Kingdom Hearts: Another Tale
by Lights aura858
Summary: A Past forgotten A Destiny Rewritten.This is the story of Kingdom Hearts with my O.C. Rye in it.
1. Chapter 1

**Kingdom Hearts: Another Tale**

Chapter 1: A Day at the Beach

* * *

Lights aura: Yeah! I finally get to start my fan fic. and it is about the one and only Kingdom Hearts (begins to applaud insanely)

Audience: Nooooo! Not another fan fic.!

Lights aura: Why are you here if you don't want to read a fan fic.?

Audience: The sign out front said that there was free candy here.

Lights aura: Whoops I lied (locks door and swallows the key).

Audience: Noooo! (begins to run around crazily)

Disclaimer: I shall sing it to you in A-minor. I do not own Kingdom Hearts! (Audience continues to run around insanely.)

* * *

"I could stay here all day" Sora muttered to himself as he lay down on the beach. Sora was a fourteen-year-old boy with brown hair that stuck out in different directions and blue eyes. He had lived on Destiny Islands ever since he was born but in two days all of that would change. "_I can't believe that we will finally get to see other worlds"_ He thought to himself as he closed his eyes. Soon he was fast asleep dreaming.

* * *

"Sora, Wake up you lazy bum, you're having a nightmare" a voice called from the darkness. Sora frowned. Why did that voice sound so familiar? There was silence for a few seconds. When Sora did not respond, the person yelled at the top of her lungs. "SORA!"

Sora awoke with a start. He rubbed his ears. He was sure that he had gone deaf.

"Sora you are one lazy bum. Did you know that you talk in your sleep?" the speaker sat down next to him. Sora turned to face the speaker. It was none other than Rye, one of his best friends on Destiny Islands. Rye was fourteen years old with purple streaks in her brown wavy hair. Her crystal blue eyes sparkled with excitement and humor. She wore a pair of blue jean shorts and a purple tank top. Two necklaces were wrapped around her neck. One was a choker with amethyst gems and the other was a long chain necklace. The charm at the end of the necklace was in the shape of the sun eclipsing the moon. She continued to stare at him waiting for his response.

"You don't understand this huge black thing tried to swallow me up. I couldn't breath and…" Rye bopped him playfully on the head.

"You were dreaming." She said in a sing songy voice. Sora rolled his eyes. He knew there was no point arguing with Rye once she made up her mind. They stared out at the crystal blue ocean for a few moments enjoying the serenity.

_I wonder what lies out there, _Rye thought as the sea breeze played with her hair.

"Hey Rye?" Sora asked, snapping Rye out of her daydream, "What was your hometown like? You know where you grew up?"

When Rye was three-years-old, she and her uncle moved to the Destiny Islands and immediately became friends with Sora and Riku, another boy on the island. Since she was so young when she left her home, she could not remember of what it looked like or who her parents were. When she asked her uncle about her past, he would simply say, '_the past is the past. It is of no importance any more_'

Rye sighed sadly, "I told you I don't remember."

"Would you ever wish to go back there?"

Rye knitted her brows together as she played with her charm necklace idly.

After the many years he had played with her, Sora knew this action meant she was thinking.

"I like it here," Rye said after a couple of moments, "but it would be nice to see it again... you know?"

Sora nodded as his gaze returned to the sea. "I would like to see it along with any other worlds out there. I want to see them all."

"I'll go with you!" Rye chirped.

"Don't forget me!" said a voice from behind them.

Rye grinned as she tilted her head backwards to see the speaker."We would never forget you Kairi!"

A girl with red hair and blue eyes grinned as she sat beside Sora. Kairi had moved to the islands a few years back from another world and became fast friends with Sora, Rye, and Riku. Like Rye, she had no memory of where she came from.

"So how far are we on the raft?" Sora asked.

"Well we are still gathering the materials. I was looking for you to see what you got but..." Kairi trailed off when she noticed that Rye was poking Sora.

"Okay! Okay!" Sora threw his hands in the air. "I'll try not to fall asleep again!"

A huge grin spread across Rye's face as she patted him on the head "Good boy. For that you get a cookie later on."

"Hmm, looks like I'm the only one working on the raft" said a voice from behind him. They all looked back to find a fifteen-year-old boy with silver hair and blue eyes grinning at them. Tucked under his left arm was a big piece of wood.

"Hey Riku!" they all chimed.

"So you noticed we weren't working." Kairi giggled. "Okay we'll it finish together, I'll race you!" She jumped to her feet.

"What!" Sora and Riku exclaimed.

"Yeah it will be fun!" Rye insisted as she bounced up and down. Sora and Riku sighed as they took their places. They glared at each other. Rye rolled her eyes. _I'm amazed they are still friends since they are so competitive__E__specially around...__Kairi_

Kairi raised her hand in the air. "On your mark... get set" Kairi and Rye looked at each other then ran off giggling.

"Hey you never said go!" Sora yelled as Riku and he chased after them.

* * *

It had been a long tiring day but they had succeeded in building their raft. They were now relaxing on a fallen tree on the small island as they watched the sun set.

"So Kairi's and Rye's homes are somewhere out there, right?" Sora asked.

"Could be, we'll never know if we stay here" Riku replied.

Rye listened to the sound of her friends talking as she worked on her Thalassa Shell necklace. Kairi had taught her how to make one earlier that day and now she was determined to make one of her own.

"But how far can a raft take us?" Sora asked.

Rye nodded. Though they had done a really good job on the raft, she wasn't sure how trustworthy it would be if the sea decided to turn on them.

Riku shrugged."Who knows? If we have to, we can think of something else."

"Suppose you got to another world. What would you do there?" Kairi asked.

"I would find the nearest store that sold ice cream and eat the biggest cone that I could find" Rye said with a grin. Kairi and Sora laughed. Riku, on the other hand, was still thinking over Kairi's question.

"Well, I haven't really thought about it. It's just..." he choose his next words carefully."I've always wondered why we're here on this island. If there are any other worlds out there, why did we end up on this one? And suppose there are other worlds... Then ours is just a little piece of something much greater. So we could have just as easily ended up somewhere else, right?"

Sora leaned back on the tree. "I don't know."

"Exactly, that's why we need to go out there and find out. Just sitting here won't change a thing. It's the same old stuff. So let's go."

"You have been thinking a lot lately, haven't you?" Kairi asked.

"Thanks to you. If you hadn't come here, I probably would've never thought of any of this. Kairi, thanks." Riku said, looking her in the eye.

Kairi blushed and looked away "You're welcome." They all fell into silence for a few moments.

"You know," Rye said as she played with her charm necklace, "We still haven't come up with a name for our raft yet."

"How about you pick one. You're good at making up stuff" Sora said.

Rye scrunched her eyebrows as she thought. "How about... Wave Rider."

They all grinned.

"I like it" Sora said.

"Me too" Kairi added.

"Then Wave Rider it is" Riku said with a hint of a smile.

Rye beamed.

* * *

After the sun set, they decided to head back to their homes. Rye and Kairi had already left, leaving Sora and Riku alone.

"Hey Sora!" Riku called as he threw something towards him.

"Huh?"Sora caught the object. It was a yellow star-shaped fruit.

"You wanted one didn't you?" Riku asked, a hint of amusement in his voice.

"A Paopu fruit?" Sora looked at Riku in confusion.

"If two people share one, their destinies become intertwined. They'll remain a part of each other's lives no matter what." He grinned at Sora."C'mon, I know you want to try it."

"What are you talking about?" Sora asked.

Riku just laughed as he ran away. Sora looked at the fruit one last time before throwing it away and following Riku.

Little did either of them know, someone had been watching them.

* * *

Rye quickly turned and headed home when they started running towards her hiding spot. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't stop replaying the previous scene over and over again. She knew exactly who Riku was implying. Rye had known for a while that both Riku and Sora liked Kairi a lot.

_I don't like __Sora__. I don't like __Sora_she thought as she raced down the beach. She looked back towards the island and caught of glimpse of Sora running down the bridge. Even though she felt depressed, she couldn't help but smile. _Well__ maybe I like him little._

* * *

Lights aura: Yeah! That was a looong chappie! Now you have met my O.C. and learned a little bit about her. What adventures are in store for her? Tune in next time for...(glares at audience who is huddled in a corner talking quietly amongst themselves) Why aren't you paying attention to me?

Audience: We are planning a way to escape from this house and your stupid fan fic.

Lights aura: You're mean!

Rye: Hey! Lights aura!

Lights aura: Yeah my O.C. is here!

(both begin to jump up and down and giggle insanely)

Audience: Wait how did_ you_ get in here?

Rye: Through the secret door.

Audience: Where is the secret door?

Lights aura: You shall never know! MUHAHAHAHA!

Audience: (grabs pitchforks and torches) Get her!

Lights aura: (is chased by audience)

Rye: Well since Lights aura isn't here, I guess I'll tell you to please Read and Review.

(grabs a huge ice cream and watches Lights aura being chased)


	2. Magic Broomsticks and a Pecular letter

Magic Broomsticks and a Peculiar Letter

* * *

Lights aura: Yeah second chappie!

Audience: Are you always this happy?

Lights aura: Only when I am on a sugar high! (huggles sugar)

Rye: Besides, being happy is good for you. The happy endorphins inside your brain keep you from sinking into depression. They say you have to laugh 14 times a day so you won't be depressed.

Audience: (Hisses) Ah! A smart person, get away from it.

Rye: Don't call me an IT. Just because I am a figment of Lights aura's imagination doesn't mean I don't have feelings. (Begins to sob)

Lights aura: SILENCE YOU MORTALS!

(Ropes and clothes appear out of nowhere and gag and tie audience up)

Audience: ……

Lights aura: Don't be sad Rye have some sugar.

Rye: Yeah sugar! (Begins to dance around the room with the sugar.)

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts and I guess I don't own sugar since I didn't make it. I do own Rye and my happy endorphins though!

* * *

It was a beautiful morning at Disney Castle and, as usual, Donald Duck was on his way to visit the king. Donald was the head magician to the king, a position he was very proud of. He had known his majesty for a very long time and usually when the king was unsure of something he would rely on Donald's advice.

Donald nodded a greeting to a couple of magic broomsticks who were sweeping the hallway causing his blue warlock hat to tilt slightly forward. He pushed it up, brushed his blue jacket, and grinned. Yes, being the head magician was a great job. His thoughts were interrupted when he slipped on a puddle in the center of the hallway.

"WHAAA!"Donald yelled as he fell to the ground with a loud crash. He looked up just in time to see the magic broomsticks run around the corner.

"GET BACK HERE!" Donald jumped to his feet. The next few sentences were incomprehensible but judging from the fact that his face was beet red and that he was hopping up and down while shaking his fists, one could tell he was angry.

After a few minutes, Donald calmed down and slowly trudged to the throne room.

"We need to get better help around here." Donald muttered to himself as he reached the entrance to the throne room.

Two doors towered before him. Donald knocked on the left door twice and then waited until he heard the lock unclick before he pushed on it. A piece of the door turned inward big enough for Donald to walk through. Donald grinned as he remembered how long it took to convince Goofy, the captain of the royal guards, that the giant doors were a mere optical illusion.

"Good morning your majesty!" Donald said as he made his way toward the end of the throne room. The only sound that met him was the sound of his feet hitting the red velvet carpet. Donald however wasn't discouraged by this. He was used to coming in while the king was deep in thought over papers. Donald waited until he was a little closer before he spoke again.

"It's nice to see you this morn... WHAT!" Donald stared at the throne in disbelief. The chair was empty_. This isn't right. The king is always here at this time._ Donald thought as he frantically looked around. It was then that he noticed movement from behind the throne. Reluctantly, a dog crept out from behind the chair with his tail between his legs.

"Pluto?" Donald was surprised to see the King's canine companion in such a dismal mood. "What do you have there?" Donald asked realizing that Pluto was holding something. He took the object from Pluto. It was a letter with the king's seal on it. Donald quickly read the letter hoping that this would quell his sense of dread.

After he finished reading he stared at it for a few moments letting the new information sink in. He blinked once, twice, then did what anyone else would do in his situation.

He screamed.

* * *

After running all through the castle (and nearly colliding with a group of magic broomsticks who had come to clean up the puddle,) Donald found the person he was looking for sleeping in the castle garden.

Goofy was the captain of the royal knights. He despised weapons and only kept a shield with him just in case he ever needed it. He much preferred spending his time either talking with people in the court or sleeping in the gardens... like today for instance.

When Donald finally reached Goofy, he was exhausted, but not enough to stop him from yelling.

"WAKE UP! GOOFY! WAKE UP! THIS IS SERIOUS!" Donald shook Goofy in hopes of waking him up. Goofy's response was to turn over and start to snore again. After the ordeal he had been through this entire morning, Donald's patience, which was never one of his strong points, finally snapped. Donald raised his finger to the sky and yelled some incomprehensible word. Within a second, a lightning bolt came from the sky and struck Goofy.

"Yow!" Goofy yelled as he shot four feet in the air. He fell with a loud thump.

"Hey there Donald. Good morning!" Goofy said cheerfully as he rose to his feet while rubbing his sore rear.

"We've got a problem Goofy but don't tell anyone" Donald whispered as he looked from side to side.

Goofy looked at Donald confused. "Queen Minnie?"

Donald shook his head "Not even the queen."

"Daisy?" Goofy asked still looking at Donald with a strange expression.

"No!" Donald's patience was wearing thin again. "It's top secret." It was then that Donald realized that Goofy was looking over his head.

"Good morning ladies!" Goofy said cheerfully as he waved. Donald froze. He slowly turned around with the expression of a kid who just got caught taking a cookie from the cookie jar. There, standing behind him, were the two ladies that both Goofy and he had been discussing moments before. Queen Minnie was regarding them with a confused expression on her face. Daisy, on the other hand, was glaring directly at him. Her arms were crossed while she tapped her foot impatiently. Donald laughed awkwardly. _This is going to be a long day._

* * *

_Donald, _

_Sorry to rush off without __sayin__' goodbye, but there's big trouble __brewin__'. Not sure why, but the stars have been __blinkin__' out, one by one. And that means disaster can't be far behind. I hate__ to leave you all but I've got to__ go check into it. There's someone with a "key"-the key to our survival. So I need you and Goofy to find him, and stick with him. Got it? We need that key or we're doomed! So go to Traverse Town and find Leon. He'll point you in the right direction. _

_P.S._

_Would __ya__ apologize to Minnie for me? __Thanks,__ pal._

* * *

"So what does this mean?" Daisy asked after she had read the letter.

"It means we just have to trust the king" Minnie replied.

"Gawrsh, I sure hope he's okay" Goofy said worriedly. The study was silent for a few moments as they all wondered what the king was doing right at that moment.

"Don't worry your majesty. We'll find the king and this key" Donald said.

Minnie's face brightened. "Thank you, both of you."

Donald turned to Daisy. "Daisy, can you take care of the.."

"Of course, you two be careful now."

"And to chronicle your journeys, he will accompany you" Minnie said as she pointed to the desk. Donald looked around the desk but saw no one.

"Down here!" said a little voice. Donald gasped. On the desk jumping up and down was a little cricket with a top hat.

"Cricket's the name" the cricket said as he tipped his hat and bowed, "Jiminy Cricket at your service."

"We hope for your safe return. Please find the king" Minnie said smiling warmly. Daisy gave Donald a quick hug and Goofy saluted him. Donald stared at Goofy for a few moments before rolling his eyes.

"Oh no, you're coming to" He said as he dragged Goofy towards the exit.

* * *

"Gawrsh Jiminy your world disappeared to?" Goofy asked. The trio was slowly descending the steps that lead to the hanger where their aircraft was waiting.

Jiminy, who was now sitting on top of Goofy's head, nodded sadly. "It was terrible. We were all scattered. As far as I can see, I am the only one who made it to this castle."

"Goofy?" Donald said looking at him with a raised eyebrow.

Goofy nodded. "Oh right... I gotcha. While we are in other worlds, we can't let on where we are from." He raised his fist in the air and said cheerfully, "We've got to protect the world border!"

Donald rolled his eyes. "Order."

Goofy laughed sheepishly and scratched the back of his neck. "Right, world order."

When they reached the entrance to the hanger Goofy added, "I guess we are going to need new duds when we get there huh?"

"Right sure" Donald said absentmindedly as he gazed back up the flight of stairs_. What have I gotten myself into_? He thought worriedly. He sighed and quickly followed Goofy into the hanger.

* * *

Lights aura: Yeah the second chappie is done! I think this calls for a Dun Dun Dun!

Rye: Tee! Hee! Donald fell in a puddle of water.

Lights aura: Hmm… I suppose I should untie the audience now.

Audience: (looks at Lights aura with pitiful puppy eyes)

Lights aura: Fine. I'll untie you, it was kind of getting boring anyway. (Snaps fingers and ropes and gags disappear)

Audience: We're free! Get her! (Chases Lights aura)

Lights aura: Ah! Not again! (Runs away screaming!)

Rye: Got to love the classic entertainment.


	3. A Night at the Ball

A Night at the Ball

* * *

Lights aura: (singing) They call us babes in arms, but we are babes in armor.

Audience: Why is she singing?

Lights aura: (singing) They laugh at babes in arms, but we'll be laughing far more.

Rye: Because she is in the musical _Babes in Arms_.

Lights aura: (singing) On city streets and farms, you'll hear a rising war cry. Youth will arrive let them know your alive make it youuuuuuuuur cryyyyyyyyy! So babes in arms to arrrrmmmmmsssss!

Random Fans: (clapping) Bravo! Bravo! Encore! Encore!

Lights aura: What? I have fans? (Dies of happiness)

Rye: (shaking head) My creator is so strange….

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts or _Babes and Arms_. I only own Rye. (Pokes Rye) See, I own you!

* * *

I'm bored...

So...

So...

Bored.

_The s__ound of a live orchestra filled__ her ears as the __girl slowly opened her eyes. Oh,__ how she hated balls! It was the same year after year. Because she was too young__ she was forced to sit on the throne and watch while all the adults danced with one another. She sighed as she fiddled with a bow on her white dress. The annual balls that her parents hosted might have been more entertaining for her if only she had something to do! She idly pushed some of her golden blond hair back behind her ear. She watched a couple who were dancing. Their moves were graceful and fluid as if they were born to danc__e. As they slowly danced toward__ her, the man dipped the lady. Both of them looked the girl directly in the eyes and stuck their tongues out at her. The girl laughed__ her blue eyes sparkling with merriment as the couple slowly __waltzed__ away. She could always count on her parents to cheer her up._

_After ten minutes, the girl found herself bored again. She let out a huge sigh. "Oh I do wish there was something to do!" she muttered quietly. It was then th__at she heard the creaking of a__ door. It was so loud that it blocked out the orchestra's music. The girl glanced up at the dance floor to see if anyone else had heard it. She was surprised to find that no one had taken notice to the interruption. _Maybe I was imagining things, _the girl thought__ as she let her gaze drop back down to her dress. She jumped slightly when she heard the creaking again. Realizing that the sound was coming from behind her, the girl craned her neck around her chair to see where it was coming from. _

_A door that she had never noticed before stood there. Light spilled__ out__ from__ the crack in__the door_I wonder where it leads... _she thought as she quickly looked around to see if her parents were paying attention. When she was sure that she could sneak away undetected, the girl crept away from her chair and towa__rd__ the door. As she stared at the door in front of her, she found that she was nervous. __Glancing down at her right hand, she found that the knuckles were al__most white from grasping her necklace so hard__The girl released it and took several deep breaths to calm __herself__ down. Once she was calm, she slowly pushed against the door. _

_As soon as she entered the room the orchestra music stopped. The girl found herself in a small circular chamber. It was lit by eerie blue torches. In the center __of the room was__ what appeared to be a giant well-like __structure.__ Hovering above it was a giant ball of light that slowly rotated on itself. It appeared more fluid than solid and there was the occasional smaller ball of light that would break off of it before slowly disintegrating. _

_From the moment she first saw the ball of light, the girl found h__erself drawn to it. In a trance-__like state she slowly approached the light."So pretty" she mumbled as she reached out and touched it._

_Pain shot through her entire body causing her to scream. To her horror she found she couldn't take her hand off the ball of light. It felt as if the light was trying to hold her there.__The girl was only dimly aware of the panicking voices behind her. She was in too much pain to remain conscious for much longer. As her surroundings started to fade, she heard a voice whisper in her mind. "_Don't be afraid._" Then darkness filled her world._

* * *

Rye awoke with a start. She was covered in sweat and was short of breath. _I wonder what that was __about? _She thought to herself as she watched the sun rise from her window.

* * *

Lights aura: Dun Dun Dun!

Random Fans: That was stupendous! Marvelous! Fantastic!

Lights aura: Aww, you're sweet! Have some candy (gives random fans candy)

Audience: WHAT! LIGHTS AURA NEVER GIVES US CANDY! (grabs torches and pitchforks)

Random Fans: Ah! It's fire! (runs away)

Lights aura: Aww, you're jealous. You really do care.

Audience: No we don't! What ever gave you that idea?

Rye: Well you just gave up your chance for escape.

Audience: What? We did! NOOOOOO! (faints)


	4. Night of Fate

Night of Fate

* * *

Lights aura: So guess what!

Rye: What?

Lights aura: I've actually written four chapters.

Audience: Whoot?

Rye: I'm so proud of you (huggles Lights aura)

Lights aura: And to celebrate, there is chocolate cake for everybody!

(Chocolate cake falls from the ceiling)

Everyone: Yeah!

Lights aura: And, as an added bonus, Sora, Riku, and Kairi appear in this chappie, though sadly this will be the last peaceful day they will have together.

Sora Fan girls: Sora…

Riku Fan girls: Riku…

Lights aura: Gah! Who let the fan girls in here!

Disclaimer: How many times must I say this! I do not own Kingdom Hearts. I do though own Rye and this chocolate cake. Mmmm cake.

* * *

Knowing that she wouldn't be able to go back to sleep, Rye decided to get dress and go for a walk. Her friends wouldn't be up for another hour (or in Sora's case a couple of hours) so she had nothing else to do but enjoy the island. Plus, this was the perfect time to clear her head.

_The ocean is so nice _She thought as she watched the waves crash. The cool sea breeze wrapped itself around her creating a feeling of relaxation. _I shouldn't worry about it. A dream is a dream. It can't hurt you. _

Something glittered out of the corner of her eye. Looking down, Rye saw a small whitish purple Thalassa shell being rocked gently by the surf. _Wow! I've never seen one that color before. _Rye thought as she bent down and scooped it up. As soon as she picked up the shell, Rye felt as if she was being watched. The beach had become ominous, eerie, and quiet.

Unearthly quiet.

She was unsure why this feeling came over her. She was used to being one of the first people up in the morning and usually enjoyed the silence. Rye gasped when she realized what had caused her senses to tingle. She couldn't feel the sea breeze against her anymore or hear the crashing of the waves. Looking out at the ocean, Rye saw that the waves were completely still. It was almost as if time had stopped.

As Rye stood there, she heard a young girl singing. It was quiet at first but it soon became louder as it drifted nearer. The singer had an elegant voice that rose and fell with each word. There was a hint of sadness in the singing as the voice drew nearer.

_Dear Beloved_

_My heart is true_

_It__'__s driven by my love for you._

_Is it true what they __say_

_That darkness is vanquished by morning's rays?_

_And now__I__ k__now my heart is strong_

_My song, it shall carry on and on_

_Until the day the worlds are free_

_The shroud of darkness taken away so all can see._

"Pretty isn't it?"said an amused voice from behind Rye. Snapping out of her trance, Rye whirled around to face the speaker. A hooded figure stood before her with its arms crossed. "It's the sound of a lost heart who is seeking its home. Unfortunately, the home that it is seeking was destroyed many years ago." The voice was distorted, making it hard for Rye to tell if the person were a boy or a girl.

"Who are you?" Rye asked still in shock over her predicament.

"The question you should be asking isn't Who are You but rather Who am I."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Rye asked angrily.

"Our past help define who we are. Without it, we would only be half a being, a mere shadow of ourselves." The hooded figure vanished for a second only to reappear right beside Rye, merely an arm's length away. "I wonder, without your past if you will even be able to survive?"

Rye was bright red at this time. "For your information, I am a lot stronger than I look. I can take anything that you can throw at me."

Before Rye could swat at the hooded figure, it vanished, reappearing in its original spot. The figure crossed its arms and laughed slightly. "You have spunk, I will give you that. But spunk alone will not save you. Without your past, your world and every other world are doomed."

"You mean you are from another world?" Rye asked curiously. Then another disturbing question entered her mind. "What do you mean that my world is doomed? Is something bad going to happen to it?"

The figure turned its back on her and was silent for a few moments. Then leaning its hooded head back at her, it said quietly, "Enjoy today. It will be the last peaceful day you will have for a long time." Before Rye could respond, the figure vanished.

The sea breeze rushed to greet her and the welcoming sound of the crashing waves filled her ears. Even though it was warm, Rye couldn't help but shiver.

* * *

It was around 10:00 when Rye found Sora, Riku and Kairi. They were on the other side of the island waiting for her. Even though she was still shaken up from her early morning encounter; Rye was still able to put on a happy face for her friends.

"Good morning everybody!" Rye exclaimed as she skipped towards them.

"And where have you been?" Riku asked curiously.

"I just went for a walk." Rye spied Sora leaning against a tree stump with his eyes half closed. "Are we a little tired this morning?" Rye teased.

Sora opened his eyes and glared at her. "Mornings are stupid. I don't see how you can possibly be cheerful about them."

"So what's on the agenda today?" Rye asked as she turned towards Kairi.

"Well, we are going to collect food later on..."

"But?" Rye asked as she raised an eyebrow.

Kairi grinned. "But first, Sora and Riku want to race each other."

Riku and Sora took their racing stances while Rye and Kairi stood on either side of them.

"On your mark" Kairi said as she raised her hand.

"Get set" Rye said as she too raised her hand.

"GO!" they yelled as they both brought their hands down simultaneously.

As the boys ran off Kairi and Rye sat down to wait for them.

"What do you have in your hand?" Kairi asked.

Rye was still surprised that after all she had been through; she was still holding the Thalassa shell. "Oh this?" she said as she showed the shell to Kairi. "I found it on the beach."

"Wow! I never seen one that color before! You should put it on your necklace." Kairi said.

Rye pulled out the necklace and put the shell on it. The shell fit perfectly as if it were made for the necklace.

"It's perfect! You should put it on!"Kairi said.

Rye nodded as she undid the clasp on her amethyst chocker and put the Thalassa necklace on. "How does it look?" Rye asked as she held a dramatic pose.

"Great!" Kairi grinned. At that moment Riku came running up followed by a dripping wet Sora.

"I guess this means Riku is the winner!" Rye exclaimed.

"I only lost because that plank broke making me fall in the water" Sora grumbled.

Riku rolled his eyes. "Sora don't be like that. I was only kidding about the bet anyway."

"Bet? What bet?" Rye asked curiously.

"It was nothing" Sora replied hastily. "Now what do we need to get today?"

* * *

It was near sunset when Rye came back with the supplies she was supposed to find. She was surprised to find that Sora was the only one there. His skin had a white tint to it and he seemed to be thinking hard.

"Hey Sora!" Rye said as she came to sit next to him.

"Hey" he said weakly as he continued to stare out at the sea.

"Are you okay? You look like you've seen a ghost or something" Rye said as she tilted her head.

Sora shook his head and grinned. "I'm fine. I was just thinking." He stared at her for a few moments. "Is that a new necklace you are wearing?"

Rye touched the Thalassa necklace. "Yes, do you like it?"

Sora nodded. "Yeah it looks really nice on you."

Rye was thankful that it was dim enough that he couldn't tell she was blushing.

Sora shifted his gaze to the sea. "I can't believe we are going to see other worlds. Who knows what's out there."

Rye nodded. After a few minutes, Rye abruptly stood up surprising Sora. "Let's make a promise!"

"Right now?" Sora asked as he too rose to his feet.

"Right here right now." Rye said with determination.

"Okay what kind of promise do you want to make?" Sora asked grinning.

Rye scrunched her eyebrows as she thought. After a few moments, her face lit up. "Let's promise that we're a team. And no matter what happens, we'll have each other's back." She held out her hand. "Promise?"

Sora's smile grew bigger. "Promise" he said as he shook her hand.

* * *

Sora lay in bed as he waited for his mom to cook dinner. He was so deep in thought that he didn't even care that this was about the dozenth time his mom had burnt dinner. The strange conversation he had with the man filled his thoughts. What had he mean by the world being connected. How had it been tied to darkness? He let his gaze go back to the window where storm clouds were gathering.

"What? A Storm?" he said curiously. Then he sat bolt up right when a realization dawned on him. "Oh no, the raft!"

"Sora dinner is ready. You can come down now" his mom yelled. "Sora?" she called as she opened the door to his room. She was surprised to find it completely still except for the wind coming through the open window.

* * *

Rye sighed as she finished her entry in her diary. She had had it ever since she came to Destiny Islands and always made an effort to right in it at least once a week. She sighed as she put her diary in her pack and slung it over her shoulder.

"I'd better put this by the door" she muttered to herself as she headed towards the front door. Before she set her pack down she glanced out the window. She gasped when she saw the storm brewing.

"That looks like a bad storm" Rye said. She gasped as she realized something very important. "The Raft!" She yelled as she ran out the door.

* * *

_What is that? _Sora thought as he gazed at the strange blackish-purple orb in the sky. He let his gaze fall down to the pier and gasped. "Riku's boat is here. And so is Kairi's" he said alarmed.

A movement out of the corner of his eye caught his attention. Turning around he found himself facing a group of small black monsters with antenna. Sora ran away from them slashing at any that got in his way with his wooden sword. He was surprised to find that his sword went right through them. As he ran, he noticed someone standing on the small island. As he ran toward it, he realized it was Riku.

"Riku!" Sora called as he ran up to him.

"The door has opened," Riku said not taking his eyes away from the sky.

"What are you talking about?" Sora yelled frantically.

"The door has opened, Sora. Now we can go to other worlds" Riku said as he turned to face Sora.

"We've got to find Kairi" Sora said as he looked around frantically."Where is Kairi? I thought she was with you?"

"Kairi... Rye... they're coming with us. We may not see are parents again. But this is our one chance. I'm not afraid of the darkness."He held his hand out to Sora.

"Riku..." Sora said horrified as he watched Riku being swallowed by the darkness. He tried to reach out to Riku but found that he was trapped in the same darkness. Before he could grab Riku's hand the darkness swallowed him.

A bright light cut through the darkness and Sora found himself on the island again with a strange weapon in the shape of a key in his hand "_Keyblade" _a voice whispered.

As he looked back to the island he saw a door blocking the entrance to the secret place. Without even thinking, he ran toward it slashing at the strange creatures who tried to attack him. He was mildly surprised to find that they vanished almost as soon as the Keyblade touched them.

When Sora reached the secret place, he was surprised to find Kairi standing there staring at the strange wooden door that he had visited earlier that day.

"Kairi?" he called.

"Sora…" She said as she turned towards him. Her eyes were dull as if she were in a trance. She slowly raised her arm holding her hand up. As if on cue, the wooden door burst open sending Kairi flying toward him. Before Sora could catch her, she vanished.

A wind gust pushed him out of the room and sent him tumbling to the ground. When he got up he found himself on the small island. A loud rumble signaled to him that something had arrived. As he slowly turned his face grew white.

There standing before him was a giant black monster with a heart cut out of its chest. Sora pulled out the Keyblade ready to defeat the monster from his dream… This time for good.

* * *

"What's happening?" Rye exclaimed as she watched the strange orb in the sky. She had just reached the beach and was surprised to find that the storm wasn't a storm at all. Movement from behind her caused her to whirl around. There facing her were three small black monsters with antenna. With no weapon to defend herself Rye ran away from them, hoping that she could outrun them. Since she was busy making sure the monsters wouldn't catch up with her, she never noticed the rock jutting out of the sand.

"Ahh!" Rye screamed as she fell to the ground. When she stood up, she found herself surrounded by the monsters. She was cornered and completely helpless.

"Things don't look so good" She mumbled as she watched them warily. They regarded her with their cold yellow eyes. Then, without warning, one of the monsters attacked. Rye screamed as she tried to shield herself from the blow. She was surprised when she didn't feel any pain. Instead she heard a voice.

_"Don't be afraid. I will protect you." _

There was a flash of bright light. When Rye opened her eyes, she found that all the monsters were gone and in her hands was a strange staff. It was completely white. The top of it was in the shape of a heart and in the middle of the heart was a glowing white ball of light. She could feel its power surging through her and was glad for its timing. She quickly looked around to see if any of her friends were around. She gasped when she saw Sora on the small island fighting what appeared to be a giant black shadow. What worried her even more was the fact that he was losing.

"Sora! Don't give up! I'm coming!" Rye yelled as she raced towards him.

Sora was surprised when Rye appeared out of nowhere but was glad for the extra help. The monster was a lot tougher than he had originally thought.

"Are you okay?" she asked when she finally reached him.

Sora nodded. "You want to help me get rid of the nuisance once and for all?"

Rye grinned. "You know it!"

They both turned to face the monster and charged at it screaming at the top of their lungs.

* * *

They were surprised at how quickly the monster gave up after a few strikes. It fell to the ground and allowed itself to be sucked up along with every thing else into the strange blackish-purple ball.

Both Rye and Sora grabbed on to a piece of wood still attached to the island as they tried desperately to not be sucked in. To Rye's horror, she found her grip slipping.

"Sora… I don't think I can...AHH!" She screamed as she lost her grip. Before she could be sucked in, Sora grabbed her hand. Unfortunately, now with the extra weight, Sora's grip was slipping as well.

"Sora, your grip is slipping…"

"I'm not letting go of you" Sora interrupted as he tried to get a firmer grip on the plank. "I made a promise and I intend to keep it no matter what."

"Sora..." Rye smiled sadly. Sora lost his grip and they both found themselves being hurled into the sky. The force was so strong that it separated them.

"RYE!" Sora yelled as he was pulled in the opposite direction.

"SORA!" Rye yelled as she was pulled away.

That was the last they heard before their worlds were filled with darkness.

* * *

Lights aura: Okay I know that was a loooonggg chappie but I figured I better get them out of Destiny Islands before I put everyone to sleep.

Audience: (is sleeping)

Sora fan girls: (sobbing) Sora is gone!

Riku fan girls: (sobbing) Riku is gone!

Lights aura: I need to lock that secret door.

Rye: Yeah! I had a fluffy moment with Sora during a life threatening situation.

Lights aura: You're not supposed to be here. You're supposed to be lost in oblivion.

Rye: I know, but it got boring.

Lights aura: I give up! Just read and review.


	5. A New World

A New World

* * *

Lights aura: Hey peoples! I'm back. Sorry it took so long to update but I have been busy with piles of evil homework. (Glares at evil homework)

Rye: (Sobs) I'm mad at you! You left me in oblivion!

Audience: And at a stupid cliff hanger too!

Lights aura: (Points at homework) It was the homework! I told you it was evil.

Homework: MUHAHAHA! I shall mold you into a mindless zombie!

Rye and Audience: (pulls out staff and torches) Freedom for the Creative Mind!

Homework: NOOO! I'm burning! I'm burning! (dies)

Lights aura: Yeah I'm free!

Rye and Audience: (points staff and torches at Lights aura) Now you are our prisoner until you finish this chappie.

Lights aura: Meep!

Disclaimer: (glares at lawyers) You know it's the fifth chappie in and I am already getting tired of saying this. I do not own Kingdom Hearts. I do though own Rye and my fantissimo creative mind!

* * *

It was late when Donald, Goofy, and Pluto entered Traverse Town.

"Gawrsh! This town is pretty big, huh?" Goofy said as he looked around the town.

"Yeah sure," Donald mumbled as he rubbed his back. He was grumpy and sore from the long flight. _Why c__ouldn't we have the one with __heated seats? _He thought as he stretched his back

"Donald! Look a star's going out" Goofy said as he pointed to the sky.

Donald looked up. They watched in amazement as the star flickered twice before going completely out.

"Come on Goofy! We've got to hurry." Donald said as he hurried off to the right.

Goofy was about to follow when he noticed Pluto sniffing around in an alley.

"Hey Donald I think…"

"Aw, what do you know you big palooka!" Donald said.

Goofy frowned as he thought. "Hmm… What do I know?" He looked at Pluto one last time before following Donald.

* * *

Sora's entire body hurt. Vague images of past ran through his mind but he didn't pay much attention to them. The darkness that surrounded him was almost pleasant and comforting. He felt he could drift away in it.

Something wet, cold, and rough slid across his face, interrupting his thoughts. Sora opened his eyes to blurred images. When his eyes adjusted, he saw a yellow and black dog sitting in front of him with its tongue hanging out and its tails wagging.

"What a weird dream" Sora mumbled as he fell back to sleep.

He heard a soft whine, then something hit his chest jolting him awake.

"Whoa!" he said as he gazed around at his surroundings, "This isn't a dream."

Sora was in what appeared to be a side alley. Garbage cans were leaning against the walls. A couple of rats scurried around the alley looking for food.

Sora wrinkled his nose in disgust. "Where am I?" He glanced down to see the dog still sitting there watching him. "Do you know where we are?" He asked it.

The dog cocked its head to one side. It barked once before running down the alley.

"Hey, wait!" Sora exclaimed as he ran after it.

As he rounded the corner, he saw the exit to the alley. In a few seconds he was out, staring in shock at what lay before him. He was in a town square. There were shops crowded next to each other with flashing signs trying to entice someone to come in and buy. People were randomly walking about either talking to each other or staring off into space.

"This is so weird" Sora breathed, "I'm in another world!"

* * *

After walking around town square and chatting with a few people who seemed to be just as lost as he was, Sora went into a store with a bright neon sign that read Accessory Shop.

As soon as he walked in, a voice greeted him. "Hey there, how can I… oh it's just a kid." The owner of the voice was a man with blond hair and brown eyes. He wore a white shirt and blue jeans. A toothpick was hanging from his mouth.

"I'm not a kid! And the name's Sora!" Sora said as he crossed his arms.

"Okay! Simmer down! I didn't mean to offend ya. So are you lost or something?"

"No." Sora said quickly.

The man continued to stare at him unconvinced.

Sora sighed. "Well, maybe. Where exactly am I?"

"What?" The man exclaimed. "Why, you're in the first district of Traverse Town, the town that never sleeps. Did you hit your head or somethin'?"

"No" Sora said. "And I'm right to guess that this isn't on an island."

"The last time I checked it wasn't" the man replied eyeing him curiously.

"Traverse Town… So Gramps is this another world?" Sora asked.

"Don't call me Gramps, the name's Cid." Cid said huffily. "Don't know what you are talkin' about but this sure ain't your island."

Sora sighed. "You haven't seen anyone named Kairi, Riku, or Rye have you?"

Cid shook his head. "Nope, I haven't but don't give up hope. They could be in the other two districts."

Sora nodded as he headed toward the door.

"Oh Sora," Cid called. Sora turned around.

"If you run into any trouble, you can always come back here. I'll look out for you."

Sora grinned. "Thanks Cid."

Sora quickly made his way toward the Second District. As he entered, a man came running in front of him. The man tripped and fell. Before Sora could help him, a shimmering light in the shape of a heart escaped from his chest. A strange creature with a helmet on its head appeared and swallowed the light. It stared at Sora for a second before vanishing into a dark portal. Sora turned back to find the man gone.

Sora rushed to where the man had been. _Where could he have gone? _Sora thought as he looked around.

He heard a rustle from behind him. Whirling around, he came face to face with five familiar creatures.

"It's those creatures from the island!" Sora exclaimed.

He felt the Keyblade materialize in his hands. The creatures eyed him warily before they charged at him.

Sora sighed.

* * *

"I wonder why daddy was so upset?" _the little girl thought as she walked down the hall. The last thing she could remember was touching a ball of light.__The next second, she awoke in her bed with her mother crying over her and her father yelling at his head magician. _"What happened to me?" _the girl sighed. _

_"Why was that door __unlocked?_

_The girl jumped at the sound of__ her father__'s voice. Ahead of her was a door opened just a crack. She could hear movement from inside. Curious, the girl peeked__through the crack._

_The king and the head magician, a man with long brown hair and green eyes,__were in the room. _

_"Your majesty, please calm down,__ t__he magician urged. _

_"How can I calm down?__ This is my daughter we are talking about! When I find out __who__ left that door open I will banish them from this kingdom! I..." The king paused __noticing the worried look on the magician's__ face."What is it, Isaac?"_

_"Your majesty you might want to sit down."_

_The king raised an eyebrow._

_Isaac sighed and continued, "Your majesty, I have talked to all the other magicians. No one has ever used that room to practice magic."_

_"Well, someone had to be using it. There is no way that amount of magic could just appear there from nowhere..."_

_"Your majesty, there is more."_

_The king __pale__d__."What do you mean there is more?"_

_Isaac__sighed again. "We went to check the room to see what type of magic it was but when we got there..." He looked at the king worriedly._

_"But?"_

_"When we got there, it wasn't there anymore."_

_The king stood there in stunned silence for a few moments. Then he __collapsed__ on a nearby sofa. "Oh my__…__" He ran his hand through his__hair._

_Isaac looked down at his feet." __We are dealing with something fa__r more powerful than just magic spells. Something... even I can't explain."_

_The king sighed and rose to his feet. "Isaac, ready my ship at once."_

_"But your majesty."_

_The king silenced him with a stare. "I cannot waste time. If what I believe is true then.__.." He looked toward__ the__ ceiling. "I better go say goodbye to my__ family."_

_Isaac nodded. "I understand your majesty."_

_"Oh and Isaac?__ Do not mention this conversation to anyone else. Not even my wife."_

_Isaac looked socked for a moment but nodded. "Yes__ your majesty."_

_They both headed for the door. _

_The girl quickly ran around the corner and hid. The wheels in her head were turning as she watched Isaac and her father leave. She may not know what had happened, but she wasn't about to miss a chance to find out._

* * *

Rye groaned. Her body ached all over. _What __did I do that make me hurt so much, _She thought miserably. Images of the creatures who attacked her island, the strange staff, and Sora rushed through her head.

Her eyes flew open. _Where am I? _she thought as she looked around. Rye found herself in a dark alley.

She heard movement from beside her and nearly jumped at what she saw. There, sitting beside her, was a black wolf with red eyes. On its chest was what appeared to be a heart with a jagged line running down the center. The same symbol as the one on the monster Sora and she had fought.

Seeing that she was awake, the wolf grinned. "Oh! I am so glad you are awake! You scared me Rye. I thought that you were dead." His voice sounded young and had a slight growl to it. Still grinning, he continued. "My, I can't believe how much you have grown. And your hair..."

"How do you know my name?" Rye said fearfully as she slowly backed away from him.

"Oh..." The wolf's ears and tail drooped. "You don't remember me... do you?"

Rye stopped backing up."Remember you? You mean we've met before?"

He shook his head and turned away from her. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have..." He raced off down the alley.

Rye sat there for a few seconds stunned. "Hey, wait up!" she yelled as she scrambled to her feet and raced after him.

* * *

Lights aura: (sobbing) Roxas!

Audience: Why did you stop there?

Lights aura: (sobbing) Roxas!

Sora fan girls: What's wrong with her?

Rye: She had 5 and 1/2 hours of testing and now her emotions are all messed up. Any little thing can set her off. And since she was playing Kingdom Hearts II today...

Lights aura: (sobbing) Roxas!

Riku fangirls: Why do you keep saying his name?

Lights aura: (takes deep breath) Well...

(Everything goes black for a couple of minutes)

Lights aura: (sobbing) Roxas!

Audience: Oooh! What just happened?

Rye: (grins)No spoilers for KH fans.

Roxas: Hey guys!

Lights aura: Roxas! (pounces on Roxas)

Audience: Do you do that when you see Sora?

Rye: No, I'm not as insane as the authoress.

Sora: Hey guys!

Rye: Sora! (pounces on Sora)

Audience: Like authoress like O.C.

* * *

Special thanks to: Simply Sakura for reviewing.

Please read and review everyone!


	6. A brief reunion and a hyper active staff

A Brief Reunion and a Hyper Active Staff

* * *

Lights aura: Hey peoples! I'm back again and we have a brand member to my posse… Roxas! (huggles Roxas)

Audience: NO! Don't join! She will force you to stay here forever.

Roxas: (shrugs) Until she writes a KH 2 fan fic., I have nothing else to do, besides I get free ice cream. (eats ice cream).

Lights aura: And since he is a new member, I thought I would let him share some information about KH 2.

Roxas: It's a game that yours truly and Sora are in. It is also really cool. (eats ice cream)

Rye: Umm, that was descriptive.

Lights aura: Aww, who cares, I have a new member to my posse! (huggles Roxas)

Roxas: (chokes on ice cream) Can't… breathe…

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts. I do though own Rye, Roxas, and Sora… (lawyers glare at Lights aura) Okay, fine technically I only own Rye. But soon very soon I will own Roxas and Sora (laughs manically)

* * *

When Rye reached the exit of the alley she found herself in the center of the district. The mysterious wolf was gone which left her partly relieved and partly disappointed. She was glad he was gone because she had blindly followed him not thinking that he could be leading her to a trap. She was also sad, because he seemed to know about her past. A past that she knew so little about.

As she stood there, Rye became keenly aware of the silence around her."I really wish I had something to protect myself with" She said as she shivered. As if sensing her displeasure the staff appeared in her left hand.

"Ah!" She screamed. She almost hurled the staff into a wall. The staff glowed warmly in her hands making her feel more at ease. "This is going to take some getting used to" She murmured. Using the staff as a walking stick, she slowly made her way down the district.

* * *

As Rye approached the exit, she heard a racket coming from up ahead. Racing forward, Rye saw a person finishing off attacking one of the creatures from the island. A very familar person with brown spiky hair…

"SORA!" She squealed as she ran towards him.

Hearing his name, Sora turned around just in time to be tackled by Rye.

"Hey Rye!" Sora grinned.

"I'm so glad that I found you! I can't believe we are in another world! I mean at first it was really creepy but then it was kind of cool exploring a place that I have never been to except for the part when the staff appeared in my hands out of nowhere that was kind of creepy but then it was kind of nice to have protection but then I heard a racket and got scared again but then I realized it was you and..."

"Rye, breathe already. You are starting to turn blue" Sora said.

Rye took a deep breath and grinned sheepishly. "Oh, yeah, I might need to do that."

They both stood up.

"So have you seen Riku or Kairi?" Rye asked.

Sora shook his head sadly. "No, I hope they are alright..."

"Don't worry. Hey, look at us, We're fine. I bet they are looking for us right now."

Sora grinned. "I can always count on you to find a positive in any situation."

Rye nodded."Yep!"

"Well then, let's go!" Sora said as they slowly made their way through the district.

* * *

After exploring the second and third district and finding no trace of Riku or Kairi, the pair sadly made their way back to the first district.

"What do we do now?" Rye asked.

"I guess we can go back and talk with Cid" Sora said absent mindedly.

"Cid?"

Sora shook his head."Oh yeah, I forgot, you haven't met him. Cid is the owner of the Accessory Shop and... Well you see for yourself."

Sora quickly led Rye to the shop.

As they entered the shop Cid came out from the back. "Hey Sora! I see you found one of your friends."

"Yeah, Cid this is Rye." Sora said.

"Hiya!" Rye said waving her hand.

"Nice to meet you" Cid said before turning to Sora. "Did you find your other friends?"

Sora and Rye hung their heads.

"Keep your chin up. Why don't you take another look around town?"

Sora shrugged. "I guess it wouldn't hurt."

"It was nice meeting you!" Rye said as they headed out the door.

"Same to you!" Cid called as he headed to the back of the store.

* * *

"Where should we go now?" Rye asked.

"I don't know maybe we should…"

"They'll come out at you from nowhere" a voice interrupted.

"Who are you?" Sora asked as a man with brown hair and brown eyes stepped out of the shadows. In his right hand was a long silver sword.

"And they'll keep on coming at you, as long as you continue to wield the Keyblade. But why... why would it choose a kid like you?" he asked as he rubbed his face with his left hand.

"Hey, what is that suppose to mean?" Sora asked defensively.

"We're a lot stronger than we look" Rye added defiantly.

The man shook his head. "Never mind, now, let's see that Keyblade."

"What? There is no way you are getting this!"Sora said as he prepared himself for battle.

"Fine then, have it your way" the man sighed as he too prepared himself for battle.

They immediately started fighting. Rye was about to go in and help when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Sorry, but you're coming with me," said a voice from behind her. Rye turned around and came face to face with a young girl with short black hair and black eyes.

She pushed the girl's hand off her shoulder. "There is no way I'm leaving my friend behind."

The girl sighed. "We both have a friend fighting but that's their fight not ours. Now come on." She grabbed both of Rye's shoulders and began to drag her to the exit.

Sora noticed this and tried to rush over to help her.

The man stood in his way. "You can talk to your friend later. Our battle isn't over."

Sora growled as he charged at the man with renewed vigor.

Meanwhile, the girl was making a slow progress through the 2nd district. Rye didn't make her progress any easier with all her struggling and screaming.

As Rye struggled, she accidently let go of the staff. As soon as it left her hands the staff floated in mid-air glowing. All the sudden, a bolt of lightning shot out of the staff straight at Rye and the girl. The girl and Rye jumped in opposite directions barely escaping the bolt of lightning. The staff chased the girl, sending bolts of lightning hurling towards her.

"Make your weapon stop. I'm on your side." The girl said as she covered her head and continued to dodge bolts of lightning.

_Make it stop?__I don't even know how I made it start_, Rye thought. "If you're on our side, then how come you attacked us?"

The girl dodged another lightning bolt. "Look, it's not safe out here. As soon as we get somewhere safe, we will explain everything to you. You've just got to trust me."

Rye stared at the girl for a moment. For some reason, she felt she could trust her. "Please stop attacking her. I trust her."

The staff immediately stopped shooting lightning bolts. Still glowing, the staff floated back to Rye and landed in her open hands. As soon as she grasped it, the staff vanished.

The girl was bent over trying to catch her breath. She quickly stood up when Rye walked over to her. "Thanks, now follow me" She said. She took a couple of steps before stopping and facing Rye again. "Just in case you were wondering, the name's Yuffie."

Before Rye could say anything, Yuffie quickly turned and walked away. Rye let out a huge sigh before she caught up with her.

* * *

Lights aura: Dun Dun Dun!

Audience: Ha! Ha! Rye can't control her staff

Rye: Why you (points staff at Audience)

(Nothing happens)

Rye: As soon as I can figure out how to turn this thing on I'm going to blast you into oblivion.

Audience: That's going to take awhile.

Lights aura: (is staring at Roxas)

Sora Fan girls: Lights aura, we have a very important question for you.

Lights aura: Okay shoot.

Everyone: (screams and hides)

Audience: Don't say shoot, we thought you were going to fire a gun.

Lights aura: (rolls eyes) Alright, please continue.

Sora Fan girls: Are you a Roxas or Sora fan?

Lights aura: I like both Roxas and Sora, so I guess I'm a fan to both of them.

Sora Fan girls: You have to be one or the other.

Lights aura: (eye twitch) WHAT! I HAVE TO BE ONE OR THE OTHER! Fine then, I will start my own fan club and it will be named: The Roxas and Sora Fan girls!

Rye: Ooh! I want to join! Pick me! Pick me!

Lights aura: Fine, we will be the first two members. The initiation requirement is to... Chase the audience with torches and pitchforks

Audience: Why us! (runs away)

Lights aura and Rye: (chases audience)

Roxas: Well, I guess all that's left is to say Please Read and Review! (eats ice cream and watches audience being chased)

* * *

Okay just a few notes for everyone:

It is the last quarter of my school year and they have decided to cram every single thing they can think of in the next few weeks. So, if you haven't guessed already, I will not be able to write as much as I did in the first few chappies of this story. Even though school work, parents, and finishing KH2 (which I am almost done with!) will be taking up most of my time, I will try to write as much as I can.

Also, if you haven't noticed my computer likes to put words together that aren't supposed to for some reason. I have noticed them but right now I am too lazy to correct them. I will eventually fix them when I am motivated.

Also, special thanks to Shadowheart333 for reviewing last chappie!

Alright that's all I've got to say so, See ya!


	7. Living Armor

Living Armor

* * *

(Trumpet fanfare begins, Fireworks go off in the distance, balloons fall from sky...)

Audience: (Gasps) Oh no! She has returned! Run for your lives! (hides behind random sofa)

Lights aura: It's true I am back with all my fan ficcy goodness!

Rye: Yeah more about me!

Roxas: Yeah more ice cream! (eats ice cream)

Lights aura: Uh, where did the audience go?

Roxas: They're hiding behind the couch.

Lights aura: (shrugs) Oh well, who cares about them anyway. I think that being writing deprived so long will cause me to write a really long chappie.

Audience: (from behind couch) No! We are all doomed. (dies)

Rye: Ooh?

Roxas: Ooh?

Lights aura: That was just plain weird.

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts but I do own Rye and my writing deprived mind... Now bring me sugar!

* * *

"Leeeooon!" Goofy yelled as both Donald and he walked down a long dark alley. Donald let out a sigh. They had been searching for hours and still had found no trace of Leon or the "Key". It was getting late and the shadows were starting to close in around them. Donald suppressed a shiver.

"Gawrsh, it sure is spooky here," Goofy whispered.

Donald puffed up his chest. "Aw, I'm not scared..."He was interrupted by a tap on his shoulder. He screamed and jumped him into Goofy's arms. Both Goofy and he turned around and came face to face with a girl. She had on a pink bow and dress. Both her hair and eyes were brown.

She smiled warmly."Hello, did the king sent you?"

* * *

After a few more minutes of walking, Yuffie finally stopped in front of the hotel in the second district. She took Rye's hand and quickly ushered her into one of the rooms. The room was simple with a wardrobe, bed, and a table with chairs. There were paintings on the walls and a cuckoo clock over the door that joined with the room next to it. There were two other doors that lead to this room. The first one was the one that they had entered and the other lead to the outside balcony. As soon as they entered the room, the staff appeared and began to float around the room as if it were examining it. Yuffie looked at Rye curiously.

Rye shrugged and sat down in a nearby chair. "Sorry, I have no idea what it is doing. I just got it yesterday."

Yuffie laughed and shook her head. "Don't worry about it. It's to be expected."

Rye cocked her head curiously.

"Would you like anything to drink?" Yuffie asked as she began searching for something in her backpack.

Having been a day since she last drank something, Rye was parched. Still, Yuffie had minutes before been the one trying to kidnap her. Yuffie could be lowering her guard in order to slip poison into her drink. _Should I trust her? _she thought worriedly. Looking up at the ceiling, she noticed that the staff was now floating around the lights as if it were critiquing them. Rye sighed. If the staff wasn't hurling lightning bolts everywhere, it was probably safe to take the drink.

"Some water would be great," Rye said.

Yuffie nodded and fished out a bottle of water. She also pulled out a pack of crackers and handed them to Rye. "Here you go, this should hold you over until Leon and your friend arrive. It probably won't be much longer but it's better to be safe than sorry!"

As if on cue, the door to the room flew open and the man called Leon walked in with the Keyblade in his right hand. Over his left shoulder was an unconscious Sora.

"Sora!"Rye said as she stood up.

"Don't worry. He's just exhausted." Leon said as he laid Sora on the bed. He leaned the Keyblade up against the wall near the bed.

Ignoring what Leon, Rye ran over and sat down on the edge of Sora's bed. His face was slightly pale and he was sweaty. Rye took her hand and pushed some of his bangs off his forehead. Sora moaned softly but continued to sleep. Relieved to see that he was going to be okay, she looked up at Leon and Yuffie who were now standing next to her.

"Now that you see I wasn't lying. You might want to let him sleep." Leon said.

Rye blushed and nodded. "Sorry I didn't trust the both of you."

Yuffie grinned. "No problem. It's hard to trust people who have just attacked you. You can go eat and drink the snacks I gave you if you like. I'll watch over Sora."

"Thanks!" Rye said. Looking back at Leon, she noticed that he was gazing at something behind her. Looking backwards, Rye saw that the staff was now hovering over her shoulder as if it were examining the condition of Sora as well.

"Sorry about that. It seems to have a mind of its own." Rye said as she tried to grab it. The staff dodged her attempts and quickly floated to the other side of the room.

Leon had a thoughtful look on his face as he watched Rye chase the staff around the room.

"I give up!" Rye said as she threw her arms in the air. She stomped back to her chair and began to eat her crackers and drink her water. The staff returned to its original position on the ceiling.

* * *

After a few minutes had passed, Sora slowly began to stir.

His eyes fluttered open. He felt really groggy and his head hurt. Rubbing his head he glanced around the room he was in and groaned.

"You okay?" a voice asked.

Sora sat up and looked in the direction of the speaker. There standing before him was Kairi.

"I guess..." Sora said relieved to find his friend okay.

"Those creatures that attacked you are after the Keyblade. But it's your heart they really want." Kairi continued.

Sora nodded not really registering what she was saying. "I'm so glad you are okay Kairi."

"Kairi?" she said her voice sounding much older. "Who are you talking about? I'm the great ninja Yuffie."

"Huh?" Sora said as he rubbed his eyes. When he opened them again, he saw that Kairi had been replaced by a girl with short black hair and black eyes.

As Sora shook his head a couple of times Yuffie looked toward Leon who was leaning against the door that led to the other room with his arms crossed. "I think you might have over done it Squall."

"That's Leon" He said.

Rye, who had been patiently waiting to speak to Sora, raced forward stopping in front of him.

Glaring, she leaned her face toward his, only a few centimeters apart. "The next time you decide to fall asleep after fighting, let me know so I won't think you are dead!"

Sora laughed and nodded. "Glad to see you are alright too." He stopped laughing when something caught his eye. "Uh, Rye... Why is your staff floating on the ceiling?"

Rye sighed as she glanced up at her staff. "I don't know. I think it's just weird."

"Actually," Yuffie said as she got up and went to stand next to Leon. "We had to take Sora's weapon away from him to shake off those creatures. It turns out, that's how they were tracking you."

"It was the only way to conceal your heart from them. But it won't work for long." Leon said.

"I think that maybe the staff sensed that the heartless could track you through it and that's why it has been avoiding you all this time." Yuffie added.

Both Rye and Sora looked up at the staff curiously.

Leon picked up the Keyblade. "Still, it's hard to believe that you of all people are the chosen one."

The Keyblade vanished from his hand and reappeared in Sora's. The staff slowly floated down and landed in Rye's hands.

Leon sighed. "Well I suppose beggars can't be choosers."

"Why don't you start making sense? What's going on here?" Sora asked with a hint of frustration in his voice.

Yuffie and Leon exchanged looks.

* * *

After following the girl named Aerith to a hotel, Donald and Goofy found themselves in a hotel waiting for her to explain to them what was happening.

After they had made themselves comfortable, Aerith sat down on the edge of the bed and began to explain. "Okay, you know there are other worlds out there besides your castle and this town, right?"

Donald nodded. "Yeah."

"But they're supposed to be a secret" Goofy said as he covered his mouth.

"They've been secret because they've never been connected… until now." Aerith let her gaze drop to the floor."When the heartless came, everything changed."

* * *

"The heartless?" Sora said as he processed what Leon and Yuffie were telling him.

"Those creatures that attacked you, remember?" Yuffie said.

"Those without hearts," Leon explained.

"The darkness in people's hearts, that's what attracts them." Yuffie said looking toward Leon.

"And there is darkness within every heart." Leon leaned up against the door and closed his eyes.

Yuffie turned back to Rye and Sora. "Have you ever heard of a man named Ansem?"

* * *

"Ansem?" Goofy lingered over the name as if it were foreign.

"He was studying the heartless. He recorded all of his findings in a very detailed report." Aerith explained.

"Gawrsh, can we see it?" Goofy asked hopefully.

Aerith shook her head. "Its pages were scattered everywhere."

"Scattered?" Donald said in disbelief.

"Too many worlds," Aerith replied sadly.

Goofy hit his fist against his palm. "Oh, I bet the king went to find'em!"

Aerith's eyes lit up. "Yes, those were my thoughts exactly."

"Then we have to find them quick." Goofy sprung to his feet.

"Wait" Donald said stopping Goofy in his tracks. "First we need that key."

Aerith smiled. "That's right. The Keyblade."

* * *

"So this is the Keyblade..." Sora said as he held it up for both Rye and him to see.

"The heartless have great fear of the Keyblade. That's why they'll keep coming after you no matter what," Leon remarked.

"I didn't ask for this" Sora sighed as he lowered the Keyblade.

"The Keyblade chooses its master and it chose you," Yuffie stated.

"So tough luck" Leon added.

"Wait, what about Rye's staff?" Sora asked.

They all looked towards the staff that rested in Rye's hands.

"What's it called?" Yuffie asked curiously.

Rye sighed. "I don't know..."

_Heartstaff, _A voice whispered in her mind. Rye nearly jumped.

_What was that? _Rye thought to herself.

_Heartstaff, _the voice whispered again in her mind before it faded away.

_The __Heartstaff_?

"I've never heard of a weapon by that name before," Yuffie said.

Rye looked up in surprise. _Did I say that out loud?_ she thought.

Yuffie turned towards Leon. "Have you heard of it Squall?"

"Leon."He glared at Yuffie before continuing. "No, I've never heard of it, but it didn't just appear at the same time as the Keyblade out of sheer coincidence. Somehow it is connected with the Keyblade."

At this point both the Heartstaff and the Keyblade vanished. Neither of their owners was worried for they knew that the weapons would appear again when they were needed.

Sora sighed, "How did all this happen? I remember being in my room..."

Both Sora and Rye looked at each other in alarm.

"Wait a minute! What happened to our home... our island! Riku! Kairi..." Sora exclaimed.

For once Leon let a little of his emotion show. He looked at both of them sadly, "You know what... I really don't know."

* * *

After a few minutes of eating and talking, Leon turned to Yuffie. "Yuffie, let's go join Aerith. She should be there by now with the other visitors."

"Leon, Look!" Yuffie screamed as she pointed at something.

From out of a black portal, a heartless appeared. This one was different from the shadows, the name of the creatures that had attacked them earlier. This one was a bluish black color and stood on two legs like a human. It had long red claws and a helmet over its head. It visor was raised so two yellow eyes could peer out at its prey.

The heartless was known as a Soldier.

"Yuffie, Run!" Leon exclaimed as he pulled out his Gunblade.

Without hesitation Yuffie raced out the door to the other room. Rye thought she heard a muffled groan and a girl's voice calling Yuffie's name but she was far too preoccupied with the heartless in front of her to pay much attention.

"Sora, Rye, Let's go!" Leon said as he threw the heartless out the window and charged after it.

Both Sora and Rye called their weapons and followed Leon out the window. When they landed in the alley, they saw that Leon was already slashing and throwing countless soldiers aside. Seeing them, he yelled, "Don't worry about these small fries, get the leader!"

Both of them nodded as they headed out of the alley.

"Hey Sora? Where do you think the leader would be?" Rye asked as they continued to run.

"I have a hunch that it's in the third district" Sora panted.

"Hey Sora?" Rye called.

"Yeah?" He said glancing back at her.

"Why is it that we always run _towards _the enemy and not a way from it?"

They were approaching the third district.

"Because," Sora said with a big grin. "It's the most fun!"

* * *

"This day just keeps getting better and better" Donald mumbled sarcastically as Goofy and he slowly backed up. First he was flattened by a door and now they were completely surrounded by the creatures that had attacked the hotel.

"Gawrsh, are these the heartless guys?" Goofy asked as he held up his shield.

Donald hit his wand against his hand. He was fed up with this bad day. He pointed his staff towards the heartless. "Let's go get them, Goofy!"

* * *

Rye and Sora made there way in silence to the center of the third district. The sound of their feet falling echoed off the walls. When they reach the center, they looked around but found that there was no one in sight.

"Uh Sora, this place is kind of creepy" Rye shivered slightly.

Sora nodded, "I know but I was almost sure something was here."

Just then a loud scream echoed through the air. Looking up they caught a glimpse of two creatures falling towards them. Before they could move, they were thrown to the ground by the impact of the two creatures.

"Ow, I think I broke my back" Rye moaned. Looking over at Sora, she could s saw that he wasn't in much better shape. He was crushed by what appeared to be a human sized dog in clothes. The only part of his body that wasn't crushed was his arm that held the Keyblade. Looking up, she saw a duck with blue clothing sitting on top of her_This day is getting stranger by the minute_she thought.

The dog and duck seemed to come to. They looked down at what had broken their fall and gasped.

"The Key!" they both said with excitement.

Before Rye or Sora could respond, there was a loud rumble as pillars appeared blocking all the exits. A dark portal appeared as a giant heartless made out of armor stepped out. All four of them rose to their feet and backed away slowly.

"That armor is alive!" Donald exclaimed as the heartless raised its arm.

"No time for small talk, scatter!" Rye exclaimed as the heartless brought its arm down. They barely managed to dodge the attack.

The duck casted fire spells at one of the feet while the dog hit the hands with his shield. Sora dodged the attacks and went straight for the chest. Rye was left facing off against the other foot. She wacked it a few times with the Heartstaff but it barely even fazed the foot. As she dodged another attack from the foot, she found herself trapped in a corner. She pointed the Heartstaff at the foot hoping a spell would come out.

Nothing happened.

As the foot rose up in the air Rye began to shake the Heartstaff. "I'm sorry I called you weird earlier but could you do something please! I DON'T WANT TO BE SQUASHED!"

All of the sudden the Heartstaff glowed white as a beam of light shot out and hit the foot. Within seconds, the foot was obliterated. They all stood in stunned silence as they stared at the spot where the foot had been so easily defeated. They were brought back to reality when a hand nearly sliced Sora and the duck in half. Snapping out of her trance, Rye quickly went to help her other friends.

* * *

After defeating the Heartless, the quartet stood in the center of the district panting heavily. As the caught their breath, Leon, Yuffie, and Aerith walked over to them.

"So, I see you four have already met" Yuffie said cheerfully.

Rye and Sora looked at each other with the same confused expression then looked at the dog and duck.

"You mean you were looking for us?" Sora asked.

The dog and duck nodded their heads.

"They, too, have been seeking the wielder of the Keyblade" Leon stated.

"Hey, why don't you guys come with us? You can see other worlds in our vessel" The dog said cheerfully.

Rye's eyes lit up as she clasped her hands in delight. "Seeing other worlds would be so much fun!"

"I wonder if we could find Riku and Kairi..." Sora sighed sadly.

Rye's shoulders drooped at the thought of her other friends.

"Of course!" The duck said.

Rye and Sora turned to each other uncertain.

"Are you sure?" The dog whispered.

The duck rolled his eyes. "Who knows? But we need him to come with us to help us find the king."

Sensing Rye's and Sora uncertainty, Leon spoke up "Sora, Rye, go with them... especially if you want to find your friends."

Sora sighed "I guess..."

The Duck grinned. "But you can't come along looking like that. Understand? No frowning. No sad faces. Okay?

"Yeah, you have gotta look funny like us!" The dog said cheerfully as he pointed to him and the duck.

The duck frowned and casually pushed the dog aside before he continued. "This boat runs on happy faces!"

Sora hung his head. "Happy? Hmmm," Sora lifted his head and smiled the cheesiest smile he could think of.

The dog and duck stood staring at him for a few moments then burst out laughing.

"That's one funny face!" The duck laughed.

"Please don't encourage him" Rye grumbled.

"Aw, come on Rye. Lighten up" Sora said as he nudged her shoulder.

Rye side stepped away from him. "No I won't. The last time you did one of your weird faces; I lost my balance and fell into the waterfall near the secret place. It took forever for my clothes to dry."

"But you have to admit, it was funny" Sora remarked.

Rye slightly smiled.

Sora turned back to the duck and dog "Okay, why not, we'll go with you guys."

The Duck put his hand in the middle of the group "Donald Duck."

"The name's Goofy" Goofy said as he too put his hand in the center on top of Donald's.

Rye put her hand on top of Goofy's, "Hiya! Name's Rye!"

Sora put his hand on top, "And I'm Sora."

Goofy smiled cheerfully at the group. "All for one and one for all!"

* * *

Audience: Wow, Lights aura wasn't kidding. That was a long chappie.

Roxas: Yeah, she actually described a battle, she must have been writing deprived.

Lights aura and Rye: (huddled in corner and mumbling over a paper)

Roxas: Ooh! What this? (grabs paper)

Lights aura: No! We aren't done yet!

Roxas: (reads paper) Rules and Guidelines for the Sora and Roxas Fan Club. Initiation requirement: chase audience. Rule 1: Must be loyal to Roxas and Sora. Rule 2: Must try to steal Keyblade Rule 3: Must tackle Sora every time he appears. Rule 4: Must tackle Roxas every time he appears... Uh oh…

Rye and Lights aura: (tackle Roxas)

Roxas: Me and my big mouth.

* * *

Please read and review! 


	8. A Mysterious Meeting and Burnt Duck

A Mysterious Meeting and a Burnt Duck

* * *

Lights aura: Hey peoples! I am back with a shiny new chappie. Sorry I took so long but I was at the beach.

Rye, Roxas, and Audience: (is glaring)

Lights aura: Don't get mad at me. I'm trying my best. And if I were to have more reviews I might be able to update quicker. (wink, wink, nudge, nudge. Fireworks go off in the distance spelling the word hint)

Rye: I think she was trying to give us a hint.

Audience: Fireworks... so destructive... so pretty...

Roxas: Ooh the audience is creepy...

Disclaimer: Gah! Stupid disclaimer, how many times do I need to say that I do not own Kingdom Hearts? If I owned Kingdom Hearts I would be super rich and Rye would be a character... so there!

* * *

Maleficent groaned as she gazed at the scene that was in the crystal ball. Though her companions were silent from the shock at what they had just seen, she knew it would not last for long. Though she could not see them clearly in the dimly lit room, she knew they were all trying to assess the situation.

She sighed again as she whipped her black cloak around and gazed at the night sky briefly. And where was that darn heartless? He had just vanished without a word earlier that morning and hadn't been back since. He was the only one who wasn't incompetent around here and she desperately needed to talk with him.

Finally one of her companions broke the tense silence."That little squirt actually took down that Heartless! Who'd have thought it?" He seemed slightly amused with the predicament.

"Such is the power of the Keyblade. The child's strength is not his own," another voice replied. There was a slight hiss in his voice that reminded Maleficent of a snake.

"Why don't we turn them into Heartless? That'll settle things quick enough," said a raspy female voice.

"And the brat's friends... Swoggle me eyes, they're all bilge rats by the look of them," said another voice. The sound of metal scraping wood could be heard.

"You're no prize yourself," said yet another voice as he began to laugh.

"Shut up!" yelled the previous voice.

Maleficent had decided she had had enough. "Enough!" she yelled as she stepped into the light of a torch. The light casted an eerie glow on her greenish skin making her appear almost ghost-like. She could feel the others shrink back slightly. Maleficent couldn't help but grin. Power could be so intoxicating. "The Keyblade has chosen him. Will it be he who conquers the darkness? Or will the darkness swallow him up? Either way, he could be quite useful..."

* * *

A few minutes later, the other members had left, ready to carry out the means to set their plan into motion. Now alone, Maleficent sighed as she gazed into the crystal ball. She gave a slight laugh. They almost weren't the effort to destroy... almost.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the click of claws on stone from behind her. Maleficent didn't need to turn around to know who it was "Where have you been?"

"I had business elsewhere, my liege" the voice replied. The voice was young and had a slight growl to it.

Though Maleficent knew he was eluding the question, she decided to not pester him. She had more important matters to discuss. She turned around and was greeted by a pair of red eyes glowing from the darkness. "How long have you been here?"

"Long enough, I heard your conversation with the others" the voice replied.

"And what do you think of the new Keyblade master?" Maleficent asked.

"Just a little boy with a new toy" he replied.

Maleficent smiled, pleased to hear her thoughts confirmed. She slowly turned around and frowned at the crystal ball. "It is not the boy who concerns me. It is the girl. There seems to be a great power surrounding her. Do you know anything about the girl?"

"I... do not my liege" the heartless replied.

Maleficent heard the hesitancy in his voice. She whipped around and faced the heartless. "Is there something you are not telling me?"

"You know that I live to serve you my liege" the heartless replied.

Maleficent laughed. "Live to serve me? Hah. I know that if you weren't bound to our deal then you would have left a long time ago."

The heartless was silent for a few moments. "If I can take my leave my liege, I feel a little tired and need to rest." He began to walk away.

_Since when does a heartless need rest? _Maleficent thought to herself.

"This wouldn't have to do with that promise you made now would it?" Maleficent called.

The heartless did not reply as he continued to walk away.

Maleficent grinned as she turned back to her crystal ball. "Yes... I do believe this has everything to do with that promise..."

* * *

Rye sighed as she leaned against the railing and gazed out at the night sky. They were all now staying at the 2nd district hotel resting up for the journey they were going to make the next day. Even though Rye knew she should be resting, she was too excited about what lay ahead to sleep. _I can't believe we will get to see other worlds! Maybe on one of them I will finally find out who I was. _

"Couldn't sleep either?" said a familiar voice from behind her.

Rye grinned as Sora came to stand beside her. "I'm too excited for sleep! I can't believe we are going on an adventure and seeing other worlds!"

Sora nodded as he gazed out at the night sky. "It sounds like this is a dream come true for you."

Rye blushed. "Yeah, ever since I was little, I have always dreamed of going on some grand adventure. But that's not the main reason I'm excited..." she paused as she turn her gaze to Sora. "I hope that maybe...maybe I can find out who I was before I came to the island and who my parents were."

They lapsed into silence for a couple moments before Sora spoke. "Rye, no matter what happens, don't ever change."

Rye looked up in surprise. "W-What?"

Sora walked towards the door and flashed his trademark grin. "We should probably get to bed before somebody yells at us for staying up all night."

Rye nodded still in shock. "Ri-Right."

As she walked towards the hotel she felt a pair of eyes boring into her back. Rye whirled around quickly but saw nothing.

"Coming Rye?" Sora called.

Rye shook her head to clear her thoughts before turning towards Sora grinning. "Coming!" she yelled as she ran inside.

A pair of eyes watched as the girl and boy ran inside the hotel. It blinked once. Then it was gone.

* * *

"Where are those two?" Donald mumbled as Goofy and he examined the ship one last time. It was around 10:00 in the morning and Sora and Rye had still not arrived.

"There they are!" Goofy said cheerfully as the afore mentioned people rounded the corner. Donald nearly burst out laughing at sight of them for Rye was dragging Sora slowly towards the ship.

"Just five more minutes mommy!" Sora whined.

"For the tenth time, Sora, I am not your mommy!" Rye growled as she let go of him and turned to face Goofy and Donald.

"Is he always like this in the morning?" Donald asked amused.

Rye shook her head. "No, sometimes he's worse."

Jiminy jumped out of Goofy's pocket and stretched his legs. "Good morning everybody!"

"Who are you?" Rye asked curiously as the cricket gave a slight bow.

"With all the commotion going on yesterday, I was never properly introduced. The name is Jiminy Cricket and I shall be the one to chronicle your adventures."

"Aw... You are so cute! You can sit on my shoulder!" Rye exclaimed as she picked him up and placed him on her shoulder.

Jiminy took in his surroundings and nodded satisfied. "Thank you so much! This is a lot better and more comfortable view than I had in Goofy's pocket."

"Ahem, can we get back to why we are here?" Donald asked impatiently. Before anyone could speak he continued, pointing to a giant aircraft behind him. "Rye, Sora, this is the Gummy, our spaceship!" He paused to see their reactions.

Rye was staring, mouth gaping, at the Gummy Ship in awe. Sora was snoring.

Goofy poked Sora. "Umm, I think Sora is asleep again."

"Thank you Captain Obvious" Donald grumbled.

Goofy scratched his head puzzled. "But I thought I was Goofy?"

"I know what will wake him up" Rye said loudly stopping Donald from commenting. She walked around the corner. A couple of minutes later, she came back holding with both her hands a big bucket. She walked slowly careful not to spill what was inside. Grinning evilly, Rye dumped the water over Sora's head.

"Ah! I'm drowning!" Sora screamed as he jumped up and down frantically. When Sora woke up fully, he realized what had happened and glared at the other three who were rolling around on the ground laughing.

"Okay, back to business..." Donald said after they had settled down. "You two don't know how to do any magic so I have graciously decided to show you how to cast fire." He pulled out his wand. "Now all you have to do is point your weapon at the target. Concentrate real hard and say the word Fire! Watch me." Donald went through the steps and sent a ball of fire out of his wand. "Now you try."

Sora pulled out his Keyblade and pointed it out in front of him. "Fire!" Sora yelled as he sent a ball of fire hurling out of his Keyblade. "That was fun!" Sora said grinning.

"Ooh! Let me try!" Rye exclaimed as she pulled out the Heartstaff. She scrunched her eyes and pointed her Heartstaff in front of her. "Fire!" she exclaimed. She opened her eyes and was sad when she didn't see a ball of fire hurling from her Heartstaff. Instead she was greeted by the sound of Donald screaming at the top of his lungs.

"Fire! Fire! Put it out! Put it out!" he screamed as he ran around wildly, his tail feathers were burning. Seeing a nearby fountain, Donald dove into it. He breathed a sigh of relief as his feathers cooled down.

"Sorry" Rye mumbled as Sora tried to stifle a laugh.

Donald stood up and groaned at the sight of his singed feathers. "Thanks a lot Rye, you turned my feathers black."

"How bout we get on the Gummy ship now" Rye said quickly as she walked towards the ship. "Sora... Goofy... you coming?"

She turned around and saw Goofy staring at her funny. "Goofy? Are you okay?"

"I thought I was Captain Obvious" Goofy said confused.

Donald rolled his eyes. "Come on you big palooka!" he said as he dragged Goofy towards the ship.

* * *

From a nearby rooftop, Leon, Aerith, and Yuffie watched the others as they prepared the Gummy for takeoff.

"We should probably go say good bye to them" Aerith remarked.

"Hnn" Leon replied, lost in thought.

"What are you doing, Squall?" Yuffie asked.

"Thinking" Leon replied as he watched the Heartstaff slip out of Rye's grasp and float around the ship, as if it were examining it.

"Yeah, I know. You didn't correct me when I called you Squall," Yuffie commented.

Leon was silent of few moments. "It's not possible," he said to himself as he lowered his gaze.

"What's not possible?" Aerith asked curiously.

Leon ignored her as he looked up again. Now, Rye was chasing the Heartstaff around the ship. The Heartstaff dodged her attempts of catching it. He sighed. "I mean it was just an old story anyway, nothing more."

"What are you talking about?" Yuffie asked.

"It's not possible" Leon said, trying to reassure himself. Rye had now caught the Heartstaff and was stomping towards the ship. A little voice whispered in the back of his mind, _"Or maybe it is_."

* * *

Roxas: Ha! Ha! Rye set Donald's tail on fire!

Rye: Gah! Again I am thwarted from learning something important. The authoress can be so evil!

Lights aura: I have important news!

Rye: You're going to tell me what's going to happen to me in the fic.?

Audience: You're letting us go?

Roxas: You've won an unlimited supply of ice cream?

Lights aura: No... Actually I defeated Kingdom Hearts II! Whoot! (fireworks go off in distance)

Roxas: And what was your Gummy completion score?

Lights aura: I rather not talk about it...

Rye: She only got 4 percent

Roxas: Man, you stink (eats ice cream and falls on the floor laughing)

Lights aura: (glares at Roxas) This time, though I am going to do better.

Audience: (stares at fireworks) Fireworks... so destructive... so pretty...

Rye: Umm, why does the audience have an obsession with fireworks?

Lights aura: I don't know maybe it appeals to their violent nature.

* * *

Please read and review! 


	9. A Rude Rabbit and a Headless Cat

Lights aura: Oh my gosh! Thank you so much for the rewiews! You made me feel so special! (hugs reviewers)

Audience: Okay what's your excuse this time.

Lights aura: What do you mean?

Rye: You know the bad excuse that you give us whenever you take forever to update

Lights aura: Is not having internet access for almost the entire summer a bad excuse?

Roxas: Yes!

Audience: Prepare the torches and pitchforks.

Lights aura: Wait! I have a fun fact that will make you feel better!

Everyone: (stares at Lights aura as if she is crazy)

Lights aura: (ignores stares) Did you know that Thalassa means sea. So Thalassa Shells are really Sea Shells.

Audience: What does that... Wait whoa!

Lights aura: (cheesy grin) Who knew that stupid summer reading could be so useful!

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts. I do though own Rye and unfortunately my summer reading. ( glares at evil school books)

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After they had finished gathering their supplies, caught Rye's staff, and convince Sora that he could not fly the Gummy Ship, they set off. Most of the trip was spent in silence except when a heartless ship had to be blasted or when Donald would occasionally snicker.

"Hm, can't even keep a hold of her staff" Donald snickered.

"It's not funny! My staff is just really... animated, that's all." Rye whined.

"Yeah so animated that you have to chase it all the way through Traverse Town before it would let you capture it!" Donald laughed.

"Do you want me to set your tail on fire again?" Rye asked as she started to turn red.

"Look a Heartless ship!" Sora yelled before Donald could reply.

"Whaaa!" Donald exclamed as he fired round after round. After the smoke cleared there was nothing there. "There is no Heartless ship!"

"Exactly my point. You were so busy argueing with Rye that you weren't paying attention to your surroundings. That is the exact reason I should drive."

"You're still not driving," Donald grumbled.

"New world up ahead!" Goofy announced."Should we land?"

"The king might be there..." Donald said.

"And Riku and Kairi" Sora added.

"Then what are we waiting for! Lets land!" Rye said cheerfully.

* * *

"Why is it on this journey, weird things keep happeningto us?" Rye mumbled. After landing in the new world, the quartet found themselves falling down a hole. After a few minutes of Donald screaming that they were all doomed and it was Goofy's fault for landing, they stopped falling and began to float down the hole. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief knowing now that when they did land they wouldn't die from the impact. Thirty minuteslater,they were still floating down. Goofy had fallen asleep, Donald and Sora were playing rock, paper, scissors, and Rye was just plain grumpy. 

"Hah! I win! Scissors beats paper everytime" Sora said triumfetly.

"What do you mean youwin! You did rock and scissors at the same time!" Donald exclaimed.

"How would you know? I can barely see my hand in from of my face!"

Rye rolled her eyes and was about to yell at them when she noticed a light coming towrads them. "Hey guys I think we are about to stop." Rye said, silencing their bickering.

As they passed through the light, Sora, Donald, and Rye felt solid ground under their feet. Goofy, on the other hand, wasn't so fortune for he fell to the ground with a loud thump causing him to wake up.

"What happened?" Goofy moaned.

"We landed," Rye replied as she helped Goofy up. "Where we landed though I do not know."

"I think we are in some kind of room," Sora pointed out.

Rye looked around the room with a slight smile. It was circular and pink reminding her of a doll house that Kairi and her used to play with. Her smile wavered at the thought of Kairi.

_Kairi... Riku... Where are you?_

"Oh, my fur and whiskers! I'm late, I'm late, I'm late!" a voice exclaimed snapping everyone out of their daydreams.

From out of nowhere a white rabbit hurried past them. He was completly clothed and was nervously glancing at the pocket watch he had in his paw.

"Oh, dear, oh dear, oh dear! I'm here, I should be there. I'm late, I'm late, I'm late! The queen, she'll have my head for sure!" Without even looking at the group he ran the the door that appeared on the wall in front of them.

The quartet stood in silence for a few moments.

"Well, that was rude! He didn't even say hello!" Rye said with a frown.

"Should we follow him?" Goofy asked.

Sora glanced around the room," Well, there is no other exist so I guess we have to follow him. Besides, it sounds like he may need our help."

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The group entered in just in time to see the white rabbit exist through a wooden door with a big brass door knob.

Rye quickly took in her surroudings. Black and white tile covered the floor contrasting greatly to the vibrant multi-colored walls. In the center of the room was a small table with two chairs. To the right of the table was a flower pot and to the left was a small bed.

As they approached the door they began to realize that the door was a lot smaller than they thought it was originally. In fact it was so small, that even the white rabbit shouldn't have been able to go through it.

Sora leaned forward curiously. "How did he get so small?"

"No, no you're just simply too big" the door knob replied.

All four stared with their mouth's open in shock. Rye was so suprised that she accidently ran into the bed causing it to slide into the world.

As they looked closer they could make out the shape of a face on the doorknob.

"It talks!" Donald quacked in disbelief.

The doorknob seemed unfazed by their reactions. "Must you be so loud? You woke me up."

"Good morning" Goofy said cheerfully.

The doorknob yawned, "Good night. I need a bit more sleep."

"Wait, what do we have to do to grow small?" Sora asked.

"Why don't you try the bottle...over there?" the doorknob said as he closed his eyes and began to snore.

Sora and the gang turned around to find a little blue bottle sitting on the table.

"Okay, that definitely wasn't there before" Rye remarked.

Sora picked up the bottle and examined it. "Do you think it will work?"

Rye took the bottle from Sora and shrugged. "Well, there is one way of finding out. Bottom's up!" She took a gulp of from the bottle.

Sora, Donald, and Goofy followed suit. For a minute nothing happened. Then suddenly the room began to growing and growing. After another minute it stopped.

" I feel so small and insignificant" Rye said as she stared in all at the table that towered over her.

" Hey, look! It seems that Rye's clumsyness has finally paid off. There is a hole over there to the outside," Donald said pointing to where the bed used to be.

"Hey yeah you're ri... Wait a second! Take that back!" Rye exclaimed.

"Or what?" Donald taunted.

"Or I'll..."

"Um, guys, I hate to interrupt ya but I thought you would like to know that Sora is leaving us," Goofy said.

"WHAT!" Donald and Rye exclaimed.

Sure enough, Sora was already half towards the hole in the wall.

"Sora! Wait!" Rye yelled as she and the others ran to catch up with him.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Well, this is a change of scenery" Donald remarked.

As soon as they left the room the foursome found themselves in the middle of a beautiful garden maze.

"I love gardens! They are so pretty, and green, and flowery..." Rye said as she stared off dreamily.

" Hey doesn't that look like the white rabbit up ahead?" Sora asked.

"Yeah, it kind of looks like they are having some sort of trial" Rye said.

The white rabbit stood on what appeared to be a podium in the middle of the garden. Beside him in the judge's seat was a woman with black hair swept up in a bun with black eyes. She wore a red dress and a crown on her head. Facing them in what appeared to be the defendent's stand was a young with with blond hair and blue eyes. Strange card shape guards standing at attention on each side.

The quartet quickly headed towards the scene hoping to find out more.

The white rabbit cleared his throat and held a parchment out in front of him. " Court is now in session!"

The young girl frowned. "I'm on trial? But why?"

"Her Majesty, the Queen of Hearts, presiding!" The rabbit continued.

"The girl is the culprit. There's no doubt about it. And the reason is...because I say so, that's why!" the queen said.

The young girl put her hands on her hips. "But that's unfair!"

"That lady is mean" Rye muttered.

"Shh!" Donald said as he glared at her.

"Well, have you anything to say in your defense?" The queen said as she glared down at the young girl.

The girl nodded. "Of course! I've done absolutely nothing wrong! You may be queen, but I'm afraid that doesn't give you the right to be so...so mean!"

The queen stared at the young girl with a look of both surprise and rage. "Silence! You dare to defy me?"

Sora turned to the group. "Hey, guys, we should help her out."

"We're outsiders, so wouldn't that be muddling?" Goofy asked.

"Meddling, " Donald said.

"Oh, yeah, right. And that's against the rules" Goofy said confidently.

"I have to agree with Sora. That queen isn't even letting the girl defend herself" Rye said.

Their discussion was interrupted by the sound of the queen's voice. "The court finds the defendant...guilty as charged! For the crimes of assault and attempted theft of my heart...Off with her head!"

The cards began to advance towards the girl who backed away horrified.

"No! No! Oh, please!"

"Hold it right there!' Sora said as he ran towards the court.

"I object!" Rye said as Goofy, Donald, and her came up behind him.

The queen was clearly offended by their sudden outburst in her court. "Who are you? How dare you interfere with my court?"

"Excuse me, your majesty, but we know who the real culprit is!" Sora stated.

"Yeah it's the heartle..." Goofy covered his hands with his mouth before he finished the sentence.

"Anyway, she's not the one you're looking for," Sora said.

"That's nonsense. Have you any proof?" the queen asked. She smirked at the panicked look on all four faces.

The guards took the young girl and locked her in a cage.

After a few moments, the queen seemed to come to a decision. "Bring me evidence of Alice's innocence! Fail and it's off with all of your heads! Gather as much or little evidence as you please. Report back here once you're ready."

"Thank you your majesty!" all four said as they took their leave.

"Great going you two. Now look what you've got us into" Donald muttered angrily.

Sora and Rye ignored him as they approached the young girl.

"Are you alright?" Sora asked.

The young girl grinned. "Yes, thank you for helping me. My name is Alice."

"Hi name is Rye, the boy next to me is Sora, the grumpy duck is Donald, and the dog is Goofy" Rye said.

"I'm not grumpy..." Donald grumbled.

"It is a pleasure to meet you" Alice said.

"Can you tell us what is going on around here" Sora asked.

"I am not exactly sure myself but I do believe there is something in that forest that has caused all this mess." Alice said as she pointed to a opening in the hedge on the otherside of the courtyard.

"Hey! No talking to prisoners!" An Ace of Spades exclaimed as he poked them with his spear.

"Fine! Fine! Where going!" Rye said as the four headed for the forest entrance.

"Don't worry, Alice, we'll clear your name!" Sora called over his shoulder.

Alice smiled.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The forest they entered was filled with tall grass, mushrooms, and flowers. They stood in awe for a few moments before they decided to plan their course of action.

"So where do you think we should look first?" Goofy asked.

"How about you try up, down, and all around" said an amused voice from behind them.

They whirled around to see the speaker. A huge cat with a big grin on his face stood on top of a big mushroom. He had dark and light pink horizontal stripes running up and down his body. The strangest thing about him wasn't his ability to talk but the fact that he was standing on his own head.

"Who are you?" Sora asked after he had recovered his voice.

"Who indeed" the cat remarked as he began to rock back and forth on top of his head. "Poor Alice. Soon to lose her head and she's not guilty of a thing!"

"If youknow who the culprit is, tell us!" Donald demanded.

The cat's grin widened as he put his head back on his shoulders. " The Cheshire Cat has all the answers...but doesn't always tell. The answer, the culprit, the cat all lie in darkness." The cat slowly began to dematerialize.

"Wait!" Sora called but the Chesire Cat had already vanished.

"They've already left the forest. I won't tell which exit. There are four pieces of evidence in all. Three are a cinch to find. The fourth is tricky. A big reward if you find them all." The Chesire called out to them.

As soon as he finished a group of heartless appeared before them.

"Whelp, it sure doesn't look like all of them have left yet" Donald grumbled as he cast a fire spell.

"Where would the fun be in that if there were no enemies to fight?" Sora teased as Goofy and he destroyed a couple of heartless.

Donald was about to destroy the last few heartless when all of the sudden multiple fire spells appeared and wiped out everyone of them.

Sora, Donald, and Goofy turned and faced Rye in disbelief.

"How did you do that?" Donald asked.

Rye had a strange look on her face. Her left eye and shoulders were twitching.

"Rye are you okay?" Sora asked.

"Cat... Head...gone... manical grin...evil..." Rye mumbled.

Donald shook Rye's shoulders "Rye snap out of it."

Rye shook her head and looked around. "What happened?"

"Well for one thing, you just wiped out five or six heartless with multiple fire spells." Sora said.

Rye looked at the scorch marks in disbelief. "What? I did? Really? That is so cool!" She began to jump up and down in delight.

Donald rolled his eyes. "Why do these things happen to me?"

"Hey guys! Look what I found!" Goofy said.

Sora, Donald, and Rye gathered around Goofy. In his hands was a long black antenna.

"Good job Goofy! Looks like you just found are first piece of evidence" Rye said.

"Gawrsh, it was nothing" Goofy said, his cheeks reddening slightly.

"Come on! Let's find those last three pieces of evidence!" Sora exclaimed as they headed into the forest.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next two pieces were easy to find but after an hour of searching they still had not found the last piece. The group sighed as they headed back to the entrance for one more look around.

" Donald, Goofy, have you found anything?" Sora called as he searched behind a rock.

"Nothing here" Goofy said as he looked inside a mushroom.

"Not here either. Have you found anything?" Donald asked as he looked into a flower.

"Nothing." Sora sighed. "Hey Rye did you find anything?"

There was no response.

Sora turned around, "I said did you..." Sora trailed off when he noticed one key factor was missing.

Rye wasn't there.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Roxas: What! Where did Rye go?

Audience: Stupid cliff hanger...

Lights aura: Yeah I wrote another chappie! And if I am lucky I might be able to finish Wonderland this weekend!

(Crickets chirping)

Roxas: (sobs) Noooo! Now I am the only Kingdom Hearts character here!

Lights aura: You know what I haven't done in a while?

Audience: What's that?

Lights aura: Tackled Roxas

Roxas: Oh no...

Lights aura: (tackles Roxas)

Roxas: (is tackled)

Lights aura: World order has been restored!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thanks so much to** Enovywarrior** and **GenisAddict **for reviewing last chappie!

Please read and review!


	10. A Strange Talk and a Juggling Heartless

Lights aura: Hi peoples! I know you must hate me now for taking so long to update but with my school workload, my parents banning me from writing on fan fiction for a while, and other crazyness I haven't been able to log on. Man I missed fan fiction. (begins to sob)

Audience, Rye, and Roxas: (is asleep with cobwebs all over them)

Lights aura: Oh. I might want to wake them up. (throws bucket of water)

Audience, Rye, and Roxas: (is brought back to life)

Rye: Yeah I'm alive!

Roxas: Me too! (eats icecream)

Audience: We have awakened. (pulls out torches and pitch forks) Time to chase the authoress.

Lights aura: I definitely didn't miss this (runs away screaming)

Disclaimer: Sadly I do not own Kingdom Hearts. If I did I might know what they were doing with the KH 3 Project….

* * *

This is weird…_ Rye thought. One minute she was following Sora and the others back to the entrance of the forest then the next minute she was surrounded in darkness. She had been walking through the darkness for what felt like an hour without finding an exit._

"_If I don't find any light in the next few minutes, I think I'm going to go crazy" Rye grumbled. _

_A bright light flashed in her eyes nearly blinding her. When she was able to see clearly again, Rye found herself face to face with the little girl from her dreams. Rye took a step back and gasped. The little girl, on the other hand, continued to stare at Rye with mild interest. _

_Rye found that she wasn't able to open her mouth _Who are you? _Rye thought furiously, hoping some how it would reach the young girl that stood before her._

_The girl smiled at Rye sadly. Her lips moved as if she were saying something but no sound came out._

_A moment later, Rye heard a young feminine voice inside her head. _

"A memory…_"_

_Before Rye could react a bright light surrounded them forcing Rye to close her eyes._

"Rye! Rye! Wake up!" said a voice by her left ear.

When Rye opened her eyes, she found herself back inside the bizarre room standing in front of a flower pot. Sitting on her left shoulder was a very worried Jiminy Cricket.

"Thank goodness you woke up, I was so worried. Are you alright?"

Rye nodded as she gazed at her surroundings. "I think so, how did we get here?"

Jiminy scratched his head. "I'm not exactly sure. One minute we were following Sora, Donald, and Goofy then the next you were wandering off in this direction. No matter how many times I called your name, you never answered me." The frightened look on his face made Rye fell slightly guilty.

"I'm sorry. I'm not sure what happened, it felt as if I was having a vision or something."

"Or something," Jiminy said, relaxing a bit.

Rye's musings were cut short by a throbbing in her left hand. Looking down, she found that she was gripping her charm necklace so tight that her knuckles were turning white. She opened her hand and let her finger trace the sun and crescent moon design with her index finger. She wasn't sure why, but every time she did this motion, she would always calm down.

"I see you found the last clue" said a cheerful voice behind her.

Startled, Rye quickly whirled around coming face to face with the Cheshire Cat. Poor Jiminy had to cling on to her shoulder tightly.

"Did I startle you my dear?" The cat asked as he took off his head and began to balance on it.

"What do you mean I found the last clue?" Rye asked, refusing to look in his direction.

"I mean exactly what I mean. The clue is as plain as the finger on my paw" the cat stated.

"Stupid riddles…" Rye mumbled as she looked inside the flower pot. A long slender black object caught her eye. As she pulled it out, Rye's face lit up.

"It's a heartless claw!" She said as she jumped up and down.

The Cheshire Cat grinned as he put his head back on his shoulders. "And as promised here is your reward." He placed his paw on her head and mumbled a word.

A shiver ran through Rye's body and as she exhaled she could see her breath. Just as quickly as the feeling came, it passed. "What did you do?" Rye asked worriedly as she checked her body to make sure everything was still there.

"You now have the ability to freeze. All you have to say is Blizzard. Because of your bond with your friends, they have learned it as well." He shifted his eyes from left to right before adding, "It's the perfect spell for someone who wanders off when she daydreams."

Rye turned bright red. "You knew?"

The Cheshire Cat disappeared and reappeared on the other side of Rye. "The Cheshire Cat knows all and sees all. I was watching you the entire time. Your eyes were slightly glazed as you walked aimlessly and muttered to yourself. Luckily, the heartless were not interested in you."

Rye paled. She had been completely defenseless. She shuddered. _Mental note to myself, When I get back to the Gummi Ship I'm going to find a way to strap the Heartstaff to my back._

The Cheshire Cat stared at her for a moment before coming to about an inch from her face. "I have never seen a heart quite like yours. It does not behave the way a normal heart does." He paused for a moment as he studied her eyes. "I suggest you keep an eye on those visions. Though it could be nothing, from what I've heard, having visions is never a good sign." For a second, Rye thought she saw concern in the cat's eyes but before she was sure it was gone and replaced by his mischievous glint he usually wore.

Rye tried to push the disturbing thought into the back of her mind as she smiled. "What is this? The great Cheshire Cat isn't talking in riddles?"

The Cheshire Cat floated up into the air as a huge grin crossed his face. "The Cheshire Cat does what the Cheshire Cat wants. The things he feels are important he tells the truth the others that he doesn't he speaks in riddles. It all depends on his mood."

"Well, is he in the mood to tell me where my friends could be?" Rye asked curiously.

The Cheshire Cat disappeared. Though, she could not see him, she could still feel his presence. When Rye was about to give up, she heard him say from what sounded like far away. "If you head in the right direction, you will find your friends in no time."

And with that, his presence vanished.

"Well, I guess he didn't think that was important," Rye mumbled to Jiminy as she stuffed the heartless claw into her pocket and summoned the Heartstaff. "Hey Jiminy?" Rye asked as she looked down at the cricket who was sitting on her shoulder. He was writing quickly about the scene that had just taken place in his journal.

"Hmm?" He said not looking from his writing.

"Will you promise me something?"

Jiminy sated up at her looking slightly suspicious. "Promise you what?"

Rye let out a sigh, "Promise me you won't tell the others, especially Sora, about the weird vision thing I had or what the Cheshire cat had said about me. I don't want them to worry about me."

Jiminy looked flabbergasted. "But Rye! It could be something serious…"

"Or it could not" Rye interrupted, "The main thing is finding the king, Kairi, and Rikku. Besides," she said the next part more to herself, "Sora would worry himself sick over me. That's just the kind of person he is."

"You really care about him, don't you?" Jiminy said, his voice sounding gentle.

Rye blushed. "Uh…well…er… that's because he's my best friend."

Jiminy didn't seem convinced but he let it go. With a sigh he said, "Alright I won't say anything but if this does continue, I will tell them." He looked her strait in the eyes. "Deal?" Jiminy held out his hand

Rye grinned and held out her pinky finger. "Deal." They shook. "Thanks Jiminy."

Jiminy cleared his throat. " Well, now back to the important matter, how are we going to find Sora, Donald, and Goofy?"

Rye scratched her head. "Well the Cheshire Cat said, 'If you head in the right direction, you will find your friends in no time.'" She stood there for a moment, tapping her chin, as she decided which way she should go. At that moment a thought occurred to her. Rye looked towards the right of her. "I wonder…" She trailed off as she broke into a grin that could match the Cheshire Cat's. "Could it really be that simple?"

"Rye! Where are you?" Goofy called. Sora, Donald, and Goofy had spent thirty minutes looking for Rye without any success. Though they were trying not to show it, all three of them were beginning to worry about the keeper of the Heartstaff.

"I hope she is alright" Sora mumbled.

"Don't worry, Sora, will find her or my name isn't Goofy!" Goofy said cheerfully.

"Even if she can't cast a fire spell" Donald added.

Before anyone could react, a chill ran through each of the trio's bodies. The next instant it was gone.

"What was that?" Sora asked worriedly.

"I don't know… But I get the feeling we'll need to find Rye soon" Donald remarked.

Thirty minutes pass and still there is no sign of Rye.

"Rye! Come out we're getting tired of looking for you?" Donald called out grumpily.

Sora shot a glare in Donald's direction before yelling "Rye! If you can hear, me say something!"

"Something!" a cheerful voice sang.

The trio turned around and came face to face with a grinning Rye. "Rye!" they yelled as they raced towards her.

"We were so worried about you!" Goofy said as he hugged her tightly.

"Thank goodness we found you!" Donald added.

Rye looked at Donald in surprise, "What's this? Do I detect that Donald was actually _worried _about me?"

Donald quickly composed himself. "Ha! Ha! Ha!" Donald quacked sarcastically.

"What happened to you? Are you alright?" Sora asked as Goofy let go of her.

"I'm fine, I just took a wrong turn" Rye said forcing a grin. _There is no need to make them worry over something that could be nothing, _Rye thought to herself. Seeing that both Donald and Sora weren't thoroughly convinced, she quickly continued, "But look how productive I've been." She pulled the heartless claw from her pocket. "Look, it's the last piece of evidence we needed."

Donald's, Goofy's, and Sora's faces lit up. "Great job Rye!" Goofy said enthusiastically.

"Yeah, you're not a complete failure after all" Donald added with a grin.

"Well, that kind moment didn't last very long" Rye said, "Anyway, Look what else I can do." She held the Heartstaff out to her side said "Blizzard!" A ball of ice shot out of it hitting a large buttercup with a sickening splat. The poor flower yelped in shock and began to shiver violently.Rye flushed. "Sorry about that!" She turned back to the others. "Supposedly because I have a connection with you three, you will be able to perform blizzard as well."

"So that explains it!" Donald said excitedly.

"Explains what?" Sora asked curiously.

"The reason why we each experienced that chilly sensation a while back. Since Rye learned the spell, it automatically passes to us as well."

"Gee, how come we can do that?" Goofy asked.

"Beats me," Rye said with a shrug, "That's just what the Cheshire Cat told me."

"Did someone say my name?" a familiar voice called from up ahead of them.

As they rounded the corner, the quartet found themselves back at the entrance of the forest. Sitting on a huge mushroom in the center was the Cheshire Cat. His tail swished back and forth as he stared at them intently. "Well you found all four pieces, Nice going" the cat purred.

"Yep!" Sora said as he crossed his arms and grinned, "Now we will be able to save Alice for sure."

The Cheshire Cat stood up and wagged his claw, "Don't be so sure! She may be innocent, but what about you?"

"What's that suppose to mean?" Rye said with a frown.

The Cheshire Cat began to vanish. "I won't tell. But I suggest you remember that spell I taught you!" And with that, he was gone.

"What do we do now?" Goofy asked worriedly.

"Why, save Alice of course!" Rye said cheerfully as she headed to the exit.

"But what about what the Cheshire Cat said?" Donald asked.

"Hope he is wrong" Sora stated as he quickly caught up with Rye.

"Those two are going to be the end of me" Donald grumbled as he caught up with the rest of the group.

"What do you want?" said the guard. The quartet had just entered the garden only to be greeted by a very angry five of hearts.

"We're here to present the evidence that her majesty had requested" Sora stated.

The guard let out a sigh, "Very well, step up to the podium."

"Somebody's in a bad mood" Rye murmured.

The quartet set their four pieces of evidence before the queen.

She yawned. "My, that's a lot of evidence but I'm not impressed. Guards! Bring forth my evidence!"

A jack of spades brought forth the queen's evidence.

A grin appeared on the queen's face. "Hmm, checking all five would only be a waste of time. All right, then. Choose the one you wish to present. I'll decide who's guilty based on that evidence."

"What!" Rye exclaimed in disbelief.

"After all the trouble of collecting it?" Sora asked.

The queen frowned. "You dare object? Then you will lose your head!" When she noticed that they were silent, she said with a satisfied smile, "Now, choose!"

Rye and Sora look back down at the pieces of evidence. To their dismay, all of them had been wrapped up in little presents.

"What do they think this is, Christmas?" Donald murmured.

"It's Christmas already?" Goofy asked innocently.

Sora shot them a glare.

"Well, there is a one in five chance that we will pick the right one…" Rye remarked.

Donald, Goofy, and Rye turned to look at Sora.

Sora's eyes widened as he quickly put his hands up in defense. "Oh no! I'm not picking. I'm horrible at these games. Rye you pick."

Donald, Sora, and Goofy turned to look at Rye.

"What!" Rye exclaimed.

"Yah, you'll do great," Sora said as he and Donald pushed her towards the presents.

"Just don't mess up!" Donald added as both Sora and he quickly ran back to where they originally stood.

"Good Luck!" Goofy called.

"Great put all the pressure on me" Rye mumbled as she let out a sigh. "Well, there is only one logical way to do this!" She pointed her left index finger to the presents. "Inny, Meany, Miney, Mow…"

Sora, Donald, and Goofy nearly fell over as she continued to recite her rhyme.

"That's her idea of guessing!" Donald hissed.

Sora and Goofy looked at Rye nervously.

Rye was slowing down in her pointing. "Inny, Meany, Miney, Mow!" Her finger landed on the second present on the far left. "I choose that one."

"Are you sure?" the Queen asked, an eyebrow raised.

Rye nodded in confirmation.

The present shook and burst open revealing a heartless shoulder. The queen screamed as the heartless vanished right in front of them.

"Great job Rye!" Sora said as he gave her a hug.

"Yeah, not bad" Donald said as Goofy and he came up behind her.

When Sora let go, Rye was bright red. "Uh, Rye? Are you okay?" Sora asked.

Rye quickly shook her head. "Uh yeah. Sure. Fine!"

"What in the world was that?" The queen screamed causing all four of them to look back at the queen.

Sora took a step forward. "There's your evidence. Alice is innocent."

Alice smiled.

The Queen's face turned bright red. "Rrrgh…silence! I'm the law here! Article 29: Anyone who defies the queen is guilty!"

"That's crazy!" Donald said as he threw his arms in the air.

The queen pointed at them. "Guards! Seize them at once!"

"Oh boy…" Rye groaned as she, Sora, Donald, and Goofy slowly backed away from the approaching guards. An ace of diamonds raised Alice's cage high in the air via a crank tower that had risen from the ground.

"Well guys, are you ready to fight?" Sora said as he summoned the Keyblade.

"You know it!" Rye said as she summoned the Heartstaff.

They began to fight. Rye and Donald attacked the grumpy Jack of Spades from before with multiple blizzard attacks. Goofy and Sora took down a couple more guards with their weapons.

During the battle, the queen was jumping up and down angrily. "Cards! If they touch the tower, you'll lose your heads!"

"Hey guys, I think we should attack the tower" Donald yelled as he whacked a guard on the head with his staff."

"You think?" Rye said sarcastically as she dodged a guard's spear.

"Now's not the time to argue. We need to attack now" Sora yelled.

They all charged towards the tower.

After taking down the guards and the crank tower, Sora and Rye forced a guard to lower Alice's cage. When the cage reached the ground, the quartet was shocked at what they saw.

"She's gone!" Goofy exclaimed.

"What have you done with her" Sora said as he turned towards the queen.

She looked just as shocked as everyone else. "I didn't do anything."

"She must've gotten kidnapped while we were fighting" Donald quacked.

The queen turned angrily towards her card guards. "You fools! Find the one who's behind this at once! I don't care how,"

The cards scrambled around the garden frantically.

"Gawrsh, poor Alice" Goofy said sadly.

"Yes, poor, poor, Alice" said a familiar voice from behind them.

The quartet whirled around to see the Cheshire Cat perched on top of a hedge.

"Have you seen Alice?" Rye asked.

The Cheshire Cat scratched his head as he smiled mischievously. "Alice, no. Shadows, yes!"

"Where did they go?" Goofy asked.

The Cheshire Cat pointed his hands in opposite directions. "This way? That way? Does it matter? Left, right, up, down! All mixed up thanks to the shadows!"

His body disappeared leaving only his grin. "They attacked some poor flowers. Who knows, they may go after that door knob, too" And with that he vanished.

"What did he mean by that?" Goofy asked.

Rye sighed. "It's Cheshire Cat talk for go save the door knob."

Donald looked at her suspiciously. "Since when have you become an expert of the Cheshire Cat?"

Rye laughed awkwardly as she scratched the back of her neck. "I learn fast."

"Come on guys let's go" Sora said as they quickly headed to the Bizarre room.

When they arrived in the room, they found it completely deserted. Except for the doorknob's snoring, everything was quiet.

"Well, where are the heartless?" Donald quacked as he tapped his foot.

"You'll have a better view from higher up" said the Cheshire cat who had appeared on top of the table.

"I hate it when he appears like that" Rye muttered as she follower the others as they climbed up the table. After they had reached the top, Sora, Rye, and Goofy collapsed on the table out of breath.

Donald looked around the room. "I still don't see anything" Donald panted before collapsing as well.

"The shadows should be here soon. Are you prepared for the worse?" The Cheshire Cat looked amused at the quartet who was sprawled out on the table. "If not, too bad!" The Cheshire Cat vanished before they could respond.

The room shook as a giant totem pole like heartless appeared. It had gangly limbs and in its hands it held juggling pins.

The quartet quickly dispersed as it brought its pin down where they were moments before.

"Aw phooey, another heartless that we have to fight" Donald groaned as he sent a blizzard spell hurling towards the heartless.

Rye followed up with a blizzard spell as well. "Hey, look on the bright side, at least this one has a special talent. It juggles."

As she said this, the heartless began to juggle its pins as it moved quickly in hopes of attacking the quartet at a different angle.

Goofy blocked its attack with his shield as Sora struck it with his Keyblade. "Come let's do it for Alice!"

Donald and Rye briefly glanced at each other before charging towards the heartless.

"I wonder why a heartless would want to attack a doorknob?" Sora wondered aloud. By working together they were able to defeat the heartless that Jiminy named the Trickmaster.

"I don't know. It's not like it can do much. I mean it just sits there and sleeps all day" Rye said as she leaned on the Heartstaff. She was still tired from the battle.

A groan from behind them caused Sora, Rye, Donald, and Goofy to turn around. "What a racket. How's a door knob to get any sleep?" The door knob let out a huge yawn revealing a small keyhole. Upon seeing this, the Keyblade began to vibrate.

"Wha…What?" Sora said as the Keyblade forced him to point it strait at the keyhole. A beam of light shot out from the tip of the Keyblade into the keyhole. There was a sound of something locking inside the doorknob's mouth. The beam of light vanished when the doorknob closed his mouth and fell back to sleep. Sora stumbled slightly when he regained control of the Keyblade.

The quartet stared wide-eyed at the Keyblade for a minute.

"What was that?" Donald said finally breaking the silence.

Sora shook his head as he tilted the Keyblade from side to side. "Did you hear that? It sounded like something closed."

A clinking sound came from the doorknob causing them to look up. Laying on the ground in front of them was a little pink block.

"What is this?" Sora asked as he picked the block up.

Donald and Goofy huddled around him. "It looks like a Gummi block." Donald said.

"This Gummi piece sure isn't like the others though. No sir." Goofy added.

"I'll hold on to it" Donald said as he took the piece from Sora and put it in his pocket.

While Sora, Donald, and Goofy were huddled around their new discovery, Rye was having her discovery herself. As soon as the beam of light had vanished the Heartstaff had begun to vibrate. Huh?" Rye said as she looked down at the staff. It happened so fast that Rye wasn't sure if she had imagined it. The little white sphere in the center of the staff turned blue for a second before turning back to its original white color. The staff stopped vibrating abruptly returning to its normal self. "That was weird" Rye muttered.

"What was weird?" Jiminy asked as he climbed onto her left shoulder.

"I'll tell you later" Rye said for she had noticed that Sora, Donald, and Goofy had finished their discussion.

Rye felt something rubbed up against her leg. "Eeek!" Rye screamed as she jumped back a few feet. Her scream caused Sora, Donald, and Goofy to turn towards her. Looking back to see what had touched her, Rye found that it was, of course, the Cheshire Cat.

He sat back on his hind legs and grinned at them. "Splendid. You're quite the hero. If you're looking for Alice, she's not here. She's gone! Off with the shadows into the darkness." He disappeared before they could ask him anything.

Sora slumped to the ground. "Oh no…"

Rye put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry Sora. It wasn't your fault."

"Remember. No sad faces!" Goofy added.

Sora smiled. "Yeah, you're right. It's not going to help anyone if I'm gloomy."

Rye nodded. "Exactly!"

Donald and Goofy each grabbed one of Sora arms as they pulled him to his feet. "Let's go back to our Gummi Ship. We might find her on another world." Donald said as he, Sora, and Goofy began to walk away.

"Uh guys?" Rye said causing them to stop and look back at her. "Just one thing, we fell down a hole to get here so how exactly do we get out?"

Sora, Donald, and Goofy grinned sheepishly.

"Oh yeah," Sora said as he awkwardly scratched the back of his neck. "That could be a problem..."

* * *

Lights aura: There you go a new chappie! And also on a side note two days ago it was a year since I started this fic.!

Roxas: Wow! (eats ice cream)

Rye: You really haven't accomplished that much.

Audience: We have been stuck here for an entire year? (begins to sob)

Lights aura: You guys are so mean to me (pouts)

Rye: (eye twitch) You let me rot for five months!

Roxas: Ooh. You're scary when you're angry (backs away slowly)

Lights aura: I told you it wasn't me fault. Anywho, I know I've said this a gazillion times but I am going to try to update faster. I have a creative writing class this semester so I'm hoping to write my KH fic. during that class. As usual please **Read and Review** I love reviews they make me so happy. Plus, if you have a fic. I can read and review yours if you like. See ya next chappie!


	11. A Stubborn Satyr and a Free Pass

Lights aura: It's a miracle! I updated in less than two weeks!

Rye: I am so proud of you! (hugs Lights aura)

Audience: For once we won't chase you with our pitchforks and torches of doom!

Lights aura: Wow the audience is being nice? This _is_ a miracle!

Roxas: In celebration of Lights aura quicker update and the peace between the Audience and the authoress, we should have a party! Ice cream any one?

( Streamers appear. Random Confetti falls from sky)

Lights aura: Yeah a party! Ice cream for everyone!

(Ice cream Sundaes fall sky)

Roxas: (smiling) I'm in ice cream heaven!

Rye: (sighs) I love parties.

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts. I do though own Rye, my sundae, and my less than two weeks update!

* * *

After 30 minutes of searching, Goofy found a secret staircase behind the flower pot that lead back to the Gummy Ship. They were now on the Gummy Ship and flying off to another world. After being told by Donald for the fifth time that he could not fly the Gummy Ship, Sora turned to talk to Rye. He noticed that she was working on what looked like a leather strap holder. 

"Hey Rye! What are you doing?"

Rye glanced up. "Oh this? I'm making ah holder for the Heartstaff so that I won't have to summon it."

Sora cocked his head. "Why? Wouldn't it be easier to summon it rather than lug it around all the time?"

Rye shrugged as she put the finished holder down beside her seat. "I have my reasons."

"New world up ahead!" Goofy exclaimed ending their conversation.

* * *

Once they landed the Gummy Ship, they were forced to push open two rather large wooden doors. 

"These doors sure are heavy" Donald quacked as they finally heaved them open. Panting, the quartet rushed inside as the wooden doors closed behind them.

Rye surveyed her surroundings. A huge golden Coliseum stood before them with lit bowls leading up to it. Plastered on one of the brick walls was a huge numbered list titled 'Phil's Cup'

"They must be holding some sort of tournament" Goofy said, voicing Rye's thoughts.

Sora's face lit up. "A Tournament? We definitely need to check this out."

"But what about the king?" Donald asked but Sora was already running towards the coliseum.

While Donald and Goofy followed Sora, Rye summoned the Heartstaff. She placed the leather holder over her left shoulder. The Heartstaff slipped perfectly into the holder.

"I hope you like your new home" Rye said to the Heartstaff.

It buzzed slightly in her hand as if it were happy.

Rye smiled as she quickly followed the others.

When they entered the Coliseum, they found themselves in a small golden stone room. It would have seemed normal if it hadn't been for the occupant within it. Standing in front of them, engrossed in his own thoughts was a satyr.

All four were completely shocked at the red haired goat man's appearance.

"Um…" Sora began.

"Good timing" the satyr said without turning around. "Give me a hand, will ya?" He pointed to the right. "Move that pedestal over there for me. I gotta spruce this pace up for the games."

All four turned towards the large stone pedestal. Donald, Rye, and Goofy looked at Sora curiously. Sora shrugged and motioned them to help him.

No matter how hard they pushed, the pedestal wouldn't budge.

"This thing's heavy" Rye whispered as she wiped perspiration off her brow.

"You're telling me" Donald said as he fanned himself.

"This must weigh a ton" Soar said as he turned to the satyr.

The satyr didn't seem to notice their struggle.

Sora walked towards the satyr. "Uh, it's way too heavy."

The satyr drops the papers that he was holding. "What! Too heavy!" He turned towards the quartet. "Since when have you been such a little…" His eyes widen when he saw them. "Oh, wrong guy." He crosses his arms. "My name is Philoctetes but everyone around here just calls me Phil. Who are you?"

"I'm Sora and she's Rye" Sora said pointing to Rye and himself.

"Hiya!" Rye waved her hand.

"I'm Donald and he's Goofy" Donald added.

"Nice to meet you" Goofy said.

Phil didn't seem too impressed. "So what're you doing here? This here's the world-famous Coliseum-heroes only!" He looked Donald up and down. "And I got my hands full preparing for the games. So run along, pip-squeaks."

"Pip-squeaks!" Donald quacked.

"We aren't pip-squeaks!" Sora added.

Phil let out a sigh. "Look, it's like this. Heroes are coming from all over to fight ferocious monsters right here in the Coliseum…"

"You've got heroes standing right in front of you" Donald said.

"Yup. He's a real hero chosen by the Keyblade!" Goofy said as he pointed to Sora.

Sora rubbed the back of his head slightly embarrassed.

"And we're heroes, too" Rye said emphasizing what Donald had said earlier.

Phil laughed "Hero? That runt?"

Sora frowned. "What's so funny? I've fought a bunch of monsters!"

Rye nodded. "That's right and they weren't no pushovers either."

Phil shrugged as he walked over to the pedestal and pushed against it. "Hey, if you can't even move this…" Phil began to strain against the weight of the pedestal, "you can't call yourself…a…hero!" He collapsed to the ground his chest heaving up and down.

The quartet stared at Phil amused.

He glared at them. "Okay, okay so it takes more than brawn…"

"I guess that means we're heading for the games?" Sora asked with a triumphant grin on his face.

Phil stood up and brushed himself off. "Afraid not."

Sora, Rye, Donald, and Goofy gaped at him.

"Why not?" Rye whined.

"Two words:" Phil said as he held up his fingers, "You guys ain't heroes."

"Isn't that four?" Goofy asked as he counted his fingers.

"Come on!" Sora said angrily.

Phil "Wanna become a real hero? Start by mastering this spell." He snapped his fingers. The quartet felt a shock rush down their bodies.

"What was that?" Donald demanded.

"It's known as thunder. Be careful when using it cause it is known for backfiring on amateurs" Phil said as he turned back to his papers.

They walked out of the lobby completely disheartened. Once they were outside again, Rye let out a huge sigh. "That was complete waste of time!"

Sora's shoulders sagged slightly. "Yeah, and I really wanted to compete in the tournament."

"Rather a stubborn old goat, wouldn't you say?" said a slightly amused voice from in front of them.

All four glanced up at the black robed man that stood before them. His skin had a blue tint to it and his hair was a blue flame.

As soon as the man appeared the Heartstaff began to vibrate violently. It took all of Rye's strength to keep it in its holder. Instead of buzzing happily like before, it seemed to be filled with alertness and anger. As she stared at the man a strange feeling filled the pit of her stomach. _What's wrong with me? _Rye thought worriedly.

"Who are you?" Donald quacked, a hint of suspicion in his voice.

The man held his hands up in defense. "Whoa, hold on there, fuzz boy." He looked over them for a moment. His eyes lingered on Sora and Rye for a moment before he shook his head and grinned. "Wait let me guess. You want to enter the games, right?"

Sora, Donald, and Goofy nodded their heads slightly.

Rye still remained on guard. The more the man talked, the worse the feeling got.

The blue haired man put a hand on Sora's shoulder. "Well, then, get a load of this." He snapped his fingers. When he opened his hand a white card appeared in it. He handed the card over to Sora who quickly examined it.

"A pass?" Sora asked he flipped the card over in his hand.

"What's the catch?" Rye asked suspiciously.

The man shook his head as he began to walk away. "No catch. It's all yours. Good luck, I'm pulling for you, shorty." After a moment, he was gone.

"Gawrsh, do you think it's okay to use it?" Goofy asked worriedly.

"Well, it would be a waste not to use it…" Sora trailed off as he stared at the ticket. After a second he looks up at them with a grin, "Let's use it. What have we got to lose?"

_Everything _said a little voice in the back of Rye's mind. She shook her head to clear her thoughts. After the man had left, the Heartstaff had returned to normal and the sickening feeling had vanished. She let out a sigh of relief as she stretched out her body. Rye hadn't realized how stiff she was.

"Hey are you alright?" Donald asked, his head cocked slightly.

Out of the corner of her eye, Rye saw Sora frowning. She quickly grinned. "Yeah everything's fine. Just got a cramp in my neck from holding it in one place for so long!"

"Wow, you must really be out of shape" Donald said with a smirk.

Rye glared at him. "I am not. Take that back or I'll…"

"And back to more important matters" Sora interrupted, don't we have a tournament we need to enter?"

Rye was relieved to see that the frown had left Sora's face. "Well then, what are we waiting for?" She said cheerfully as she raced towards the Coliseum.

"Hey Rye! Wait for us!" Goofy called as he, Sora, and Donald quickly followed her.

* * *

From a dark corner, Hades watched the quartet as they ran towards the Coliseum. "Those suckers are falling right into my trap" he said with a grin. The lighting from his blue flamed hair caused his grin to almost look demonic. 

"Having fun playing our games are we?" said a growling voice from behind him. Hades whirled around and came face to face with a black heartless wolf. He was sitting on his hind legs with a smirk on his face.

"You're one of Maleficent's henchmen aren't you?" Hades said as he crossed his arms. "Did she send you to spy on me?"

The heartless shook his head as he came to stand beside him. "No, I came for my own interests."

Hades snickered slightly. "What's this? A heartless that actually has a free will? Now that's something you don't see everyday."

The heartless ignored him as he watched Sora, Rye, Donald and Goofy for a moment. Still staring at them he asked, "Do you fear the Keyblade?"

Hades stumbled slightly surprised that the heartless would ask such a question. "Me? No, why would I be? I'm a god. I'm only doing this for amusement and for…insurance."

"Un huh" The heartless grunted as he watched the quartet struggle to get the Coliseum doors open.

"Aren't you supposed to be afraid of Keyblade, you know being a heartless and all?" Hades asked.

The heartless didn't take his eyes of the quartet. "I suppose I should but since my heart is gone I can't really feel fear now can I?"

Hades mentally slapped himself as he turned his gaze back to the quartet. "Yeah right."

They watched as Sora, Donald, Goofy entered the Coliseum. Rye was about to enter when she stopped. She turned around frowning and looked right in their direction. Though Hades knew she could not see them because the shadows were hiding them completely, he couldn't help but take a step back.

After a tense minute, Rye shook her head as if to clear her mind and quickly followed after Sora and the others.

Hades let out a sigh. "That girl… There's something… different about her."

The heartless nodded as he watched the Coliseum doors shut. "You have no idea how different she is."

* * *

Lights aura: And that's the end of this chappie! I skipped the part with the trial of barrels for three reasons: 1) I didn't really feel like writing it 2) it doesn't play a huge part in the story 3) Because I said so. 

Rye: (is on huge sugar high and running in circles with hands stuck out to the sides) Fwee! Running is circles is fun!

Roxas: (is on huge sugar high) That looks like fun! I wanna try!

(both run around in circles with their hands stuck out to the sides)

Rye and Roxas: Fwee!!

Lights aura: Anyway, I'll try to write the next chappie this week but there are no guarantees since we have musical dress rehearsals this week and they take up pretty much the entire time.

Audience: What? You might not be able to write this week? Bring out the pitchforks and torches of doom! (pulls out pitchforks and torches)

Lights aura: Wait! What about our peace?

Audience: The peace has ended. War has begun! Now everyone to battle!!

Lights aura: Well, it was fun while it lasted. (runs away screaming)

* * *

Pretty Please with Cheese on Top Review!!! 


	12. Aww! Look at the Cute Little Doggie!

Lights aura: Hey peoples! I know I said I probably wouldn't be able to write anything until next week, but it turns out that I was able to find time. (grins happily)

Rye: You are a writing machine!

Audience: Nooo! Now we have to deal with her more often! (falls to the floor and begins to spazz)

Roxas: Wow the audience really doesn't like you

Lights aura: ….

Disclaimer: Ho hum, I hate this part. I do not own Kingdom Hearts, I only own Rye. If I did own Kingdom Hearts then maybe I would have enough money to buy a new I-pod….

* * *

"Hey, how'd you get this?" Phil demanded as he gazed at the pass in his hand. After entering the Coliseum, Sora, Rye, Donald, and Goofy had shown a very surprised satyr their pass. 

"Can we enter the games now?" Sora asked, his eyes sparkling with hope.

"Well…" Phil looked over the pass once more before letting out a sigh. "I guess so."

"Yeah!" Rye grinned as she jumped up and down.

"This is so cool!" Sora added.

"We'll start with the preliminaries" Phil said as he looked down at his clipboard.

"The preliminaries?" Donald asked suspiciously.

Phil glanced up from his clipboard. "Of course, in order to complete in the later round you have to win the preliminaries. So are you ready?"

All four nodded.

"Good," Phil looked back down at his clipboard. "Some real weirdos signed up for the games. Better watch yourself."

"Aw, we can take them" Donald said confidently.

Rye nudged Sora. "Besides we have the Keyblade on our side. What could possibly go wrong?"

* * *

"Me and my big mouth" Rye groaned. After entering the battle arena, the group found themselves fighting in the first round ten soldier heartless. 

"You can say that again" Donald yelled as he shot a fire spell and vaporized one of the soldiers. "Nothing would go wrong, you said. We had the Keyblade on our side you said."

"I get it Donald. I was wrong" Rye yelled angrily as she dodged a soldier.

"Rye, Donald don't fight!" Goofy said as he threw his shield like a boomerang at a couple of the heartless stunning them.

"Yeah safe your energy for the battle" Sora added as he struck one of the stunned soldiers with his Keyblade.

Rye rolled away from another heartless attack. "Gah! I hate these stupid heartless!" She raised the Heartstaff in the air "THUNDER!" A bolt of lightning shot down from the sky instantly destroying three heartless.

Donald turned to stare at her. "How did you do that? You've barely mastered a simple blizzard or fire spell."

Rye thought back to when the Heartstaff had hurled lightning bolts at Yuffie. She laughed sheepishly. "It's a long story. Let's just say the Hearstaff really likes to hurl lightning bolts."

They quickly went to help Sora and Goofy finish off the rest of the heartless.

* * *

After a few more battles, the preliminary rounds were over. They were allowed a fifteen minute break before the next round. 

Though they were slightly tired all four were in high spirits.

Phil handed each of them water bottles as they mumbled a thank you and collapsed on a nearby bench. "You're no heroes yet but you ain't doing bad."

Rye, who was leaning against Sora's back for support turned her head toward him. "Hey Sora, I think he just gave us a compliment."

"Now isn't that something" Sora said with a grin as he took a sip of water.

Everyone laughed as Phil crossed his arms and frowned at them.

All of the sudden the strange sickening feeling clamped itself around Rye's stomach. It wasn't as bad as before but it was enough to make her take notice.

The laughter was cut short when a man with spiky blond hair and brown eyes walked by them. He was dressed in gladiator style clothes and his right hand wore a black glove. He stared at them for a moment before continuing on to his destination.

After he was gone, the sickening feeling vanished and Rye was able to breathe again. "Well, that was weird…"

Sora, Donald, and Goofy nodded in agreement.

His arms still crossed, Phil stared in the direction that the strange man had gone. "Something tells me he'll be a tough one to beat. Who knows, maybe you'll end up facing him."

A bell went off signaling the competitors to return to the battle arena.

"Well I guess it's time to go" Goofy said as he and Donald headed towards the battle arena. Rye and Sora brought up the rear.

"Hey Sora?" Rye asked.

"Hmm?" Sora looked towards her.

"I hope he loses" she said as she pulled the Heartstaff out.

"Who?" Sora asked frowning.

Rye looked back at Sora. "That man. I don't why but he's given me the creeps."

* * *

After winning the next few rounds, the group was allowed another fifteen minute break. They collapsed on the bench again drinking out of the fresh water bottles Phil had given them. 

"This is going on for forever" Donald complained as he massaged his webbed feet.

"Don't worry. I think there is only one or two more rounds left" Sora said as he stretched his back.

Phil was beaming at them. "Say, you're better than I thought! I wish he was here to see this…"

"Who?" Sora asked curiously.

Phil shook his head to clear his thoughts. "Hercules. He's a hero if there ever was one. Too bad he's off visiting his father."

"Who's his father?" Rye asked.

Phil looked at them in disbelief. "Why Zeus, of course. The king of the gods."

Sora's, Rye's, Donald's, and Goofy's eyes widened as their jaws dropped. "Hercules' father is a god?!"

* * *

Hades glared at the quartet as they talked to Phil. He hated to admit it but he was kind of glad they had gotten this far in the tournament. It would make the next chain of events more interesting. He could feel the eyes of his pawn, Cloud, and the heartless wolf boring into him. He quickly turned around and addressed Cloud "That little punk is your next opponent, okay? Now don't blow it. Just take him out." 

"The great god of the Underworld is afraid of a kid?" Cloud said with a slight laugh. "Sorry, but my contract says…"

The blue hair on Hades head flared and turned orange "I know! You think I don't know? I wrote the contract!" He took a deep breath as his hair returned normal. "I know it says you're only required to kill Hercules in this tournament. But you've gotta fight that kid to get to him."

Cloud raised an eyebrow at him.

Hades put a hand on Cloud's shoulder. "Come on. Hey, it's like that old goat says: Rule 11: It's all just a game, so let loose and have fun with it! I mean, a casualty or two along the way is no big deal, right?"

Without answering Cloud left.

"Geez. He's stiffer than the stiffs back home" Hades commented to himself.

"Yeah, he didn't seem to like your idea of fun at all." The heartless said sarcastically.

Hades ignored his comment as he watched Sora and company climb on the battle platform. "Still, suckers like him are hard to come by..." He heard the heartless walking away. Without turning around he called, "Where are you going?"

"I want to get a better view" the heartless stated as he disappeared from Hades sight.

Hades rolled his eyes. "That old witch sure has an odd collection of minions. A stupid crow, and a heartless wolf. Who will she recruit next, a cow?" He laughed at his own joke before turning back to the battle. "Still, if everything falls into place, I may not even need her help."

From the distance Maleficent smirked at the god of the Underworld. She grinned slightly amused. "You are wrong my dear friend. If the pieces fall into place then it will be I who doesn't need you." She turned her gaze down to the heartless wolf who stood beside her waiting for her orders. "Stay here a keep an eye on our good friend Hades."

"And what of his plans?" the heartless asked curiously, his head cocked.

She turned to look back at the scheming god. "His silly plan should fail but if it doesn't…" She paused for a second lost in thought. "Make sure that I am the next owner of the Keyblade and Heartstaff."

The heartless bowed. "Yes, my liege."

* * *

"Why is this happening" Rye groaned. When they arrived on the battle field, they found that their next opponent happened to be the strange blond hair man. He was merciless with his successive attacks. Rye not only had to deal with that but also with the slight sickening feeling she had in her stomach. 

"Rye look out" Goofy yelled.

Rye ducked just in time to miss the swing of the man's massive blade.

"Why do you have to be so mean" Rye whined as she shot a fire spell at him.

He deflected it with his sword.

"Your name is Cloud. Aren't you supposed to be carefree and happy?" Rye asked has she blocked his sword with her staff. She had to strained due to the amount of pressure and power he put into his swing.

Cloud let out a sigh. "Not until I find it."

Though she did not back down, she was surprised to hear him speak. "Find what?"

His only response was a glare as he knocked the Heartstaff out of her grasp. As he swung his blade down, Sora tackled Rye getting them both out of harm's way at the last second.

They quickly untangled themselves as Rye scooped up the Heartstaff. "Thanks for the assist."

Sora grinned. "No problem but I think we need to change tactics. Instead of attacking him individually, why don't we attack him all at once."

They quickly separated as Cloud swung at them again before regrouping on the other side with Donald and Goofy.

Rye nodded, "I like the sound of that. Goofy? Donald? Are you up for it?"

"Sure we are!" Goofy replied cheerfully.

"You can count on us!" Donald added.

Sora nodded. "Then let's go!"

They all charged Cloud.

* * *

By successfully working together, they were able to defeat Cloud in ten minutes. The quartet stood breathing heavily while Cloud lay unconscious on the ground. Before anyone could react, a loud earthquake shook the entire stadium. After the quake stopped a gate opened. A large black three headed dog came running out of it. 

Hades grinned as he watched his pet, rushed towards Cloud and the others. "Oh, right, there was one other rule I forgot: Accidents happen."

"Awww, look at the cute little doggie!" Rye exclaimed as the dog came bounding toward them.

"Cute? Little? Are we looking at the same dog? " Donald asked in disbelief.

Rye crossed her arms and glared at him. "You're just afraid of dogs. If they since fear then they will attack you. If you aren't afraid then they won't feel the need to be so aggressive."

"Fear or not. I think the dog still wants to bite our heads off" Sora said as he once again tackled Rye getting them both out of the way of the dog's massive jaws. They fell in a tumbled heap their faces barely an inch apart.

Rye quickly calmed herself down to prevent herself from blushing. "You know," Rye remarked, "We really need to stop meeting like this." She laughed when she saw that Sora actually blushed at her remark.

He quickly stood up and helped her to her feet. "Sorry about that."

"Hey when you two get a minute. Would you mind helping us!" Donald yelled as he and Goofy dragged the body of the unconscious Cloud into a corner. The three-headed hound blocked their only chance of escape. Drool seeped out of its jaws as it brought its three heads closer to its prey.

Sora and Rye were about to go help when a red haired man in Athenian clothing jumped in between the dog and its preys. He punched the three heads sending the dog tumbling to the ground.

"Herc!" Phil yelled from behind a fallen pillar catching both Sora and Rye off guard. They had completely forgotten that he was there.

Hercules quickly hoisted Cloud over his shoulder saying "Phil, get them out of here! I'll deal with Cerberus."

Without hesitation, Sora, Rye, Donald, and Goofy quickly followed Phil back to the Lobby.

Once they were in the lobby, they collapsed to the floor with a sigh of relief.

"Whew, that was close! That was Cerberus, the guardian of the Underworld. Herc should be able to handle him." Phil said confidently. A loud roar and a crash shook the entire coliseum. Phil became extremely uneasy as he shifted from one foot to another. "But then again, maybe not..." Another loud roar rang through the Coliseum followed by two more ground shakes. "This doesn't look good."

Rye and Sora looked at each other. Realizing that they both had the same idea, they turned to Goofy and Donald, with looks of determination.

Goofy looked back at them completely confused.

Donald on the other hand glared. "Please don't tell me you are planning to go back and fight."

Both Sora and Rye nod.

Phil looked at them in disbelief. "Kids, you're not serious about entering the arena, are ya? This ain't just some match. This is for real!"

Sora turned towards Phil. "We're not afraid. You can decide if we're hero material or not."

Though Phil tried to hide it under his frown, his respect showed through his eyes. "Well, then be careful."

They quickly headed back outside. Once they arrived in the battle arena, they found a badly injured Hercules and an unconscious Cloud trapped in a corner by Cerberus. The quartet quickly summoned their weapons.

"Kids," Phil said, "I got two words of advice for you: Attack!"

They took his advice.

* * *

After a hard battle, they were able to defeat Cerberus. While they celebrated, unknown to them, someone was watching them from the stands. The heartless wolf smiled as he watched their celebratory dancing. "Well, done Rye well done."

The Heartstaff decided to join in the fun by slipping out of Rye's grasp. Its dance consisted of twirls and spins as it dodged the attempts of a very flustered Rye.

A feeling of loneliness washed over him, as he watched both Rye and Sora chase the staff around the arena while Goofy, Donald, Phil, and Hercules stood laughing.

"Even with a part of you missing you're still prevailing in what ever goal you wish to accomplish." A tear trickled down his face. "Your father would be proud." He quickly brushed the tear away. "And so am I." He slid into the shadows.

Back in the arena, Rye finally caught the Heartstaff. She whirled around to face the stands only to see them completely empty. "That's odd," she said to herself as she placed the Heartstaff back into its holder. "I could have sworn someone was sitting there."

* * *

Once they entered the lobby again, Phil and Hercules presented the quartet with an award. "Thus, I do hereby dub thee junior heroes, and confer upon thee full rights and privileges to participate in the games. Further-" Phil began. 

"Hey! What do you mean 'junior heroes'?" Donald quacked.

"Yeah we just defeated the Guardian of the Underworld." Rye added.

Phil shook his head. "You rookies still don't understand what it takes to be a true hero."

"So, what does it take?" Goofy said preventing another outburst from Rye or Donald.

Hercules smiled. "Well, that's just something you'll have to find out for yourselves. Just the way that I did."

Sora shrugged. "No problem. We'll start by proving ourselves in the games."

"There ain't gonna be any games for a while." Phil said as he looked around at the ruins of the once great Coliseum. "I gotta clean up the mess from that last battle first."

"Okay, we'll be back." Sora said as they began to leave.

"Yeah, see ya later!" Rye chirped as she followed the others outside.

Once he was sure they were out of earshot, Phil said, "I still can't believe those squirts actually beat Cerberus."

Hercules leaned in towards him, "Just between us, I'd already worn Cerberus down by the time the little guys jumped in."

Phil made a zipping motion with his lips. "My lips are sealed."

* * *

Once the quartet exited the lobby, they found Cloud sitting near the tournament's stats board. Rye noticed that though he was near, the sick feeling hadn't returned. 

As they walked towards him, Cloud glanced up.

"Hey, are you all right?" Sora asked.

Cloud leaned back against the board. "Yeah."

Sora kicked a piece of dirt. "So why did you go along with him, anyway?"

"I'm looking for someone. Hades promised to help. I tried to exploit the power of darkness, but it backfired." He stood up. "I fell into darkness, and couldn't find the light."

Sora smiled. "You'll find it. I'm searching, too."

"For your light?" Cloud glanced at Rye who was staring at him intently. "You've already found your light. It's been beside you the entire time." He placed a hand on Sora shoulder and looked him straight in the eyes. "Don't lose sight of it."

"O…kay" Sora said slightly confused as Cloud began to walk away from them. He looked at Rye who just shrugged. He quickly shook off his confusion. "How about a rematch sometime?" He called. "Fair and square, no dark powers involved."

Cloud paused for a moment as if he was thinking. "I think I'll pass." With a slight wave he left.

"I guess, he wasn't as bad of a guy as I originally thought." Rye remarked.

"It looks like we're heading to another world" Donald said.

"Next stop Kairi!" Sora said.

"And Riku!" Rye added.

"And the King!" Goofy finished.

They all cheered.

* * *

Hades growled at the miniature image of Hercules in his hand. "He's strong, he's kind. He's always there for you, and he's handsome to boot. He's perfect. Perfect." He crushed the image in his hand reducing it to smoke. "Perfectly infuriating! He makes me crazy." Hades took a deep breath and rubbed his hand against his face. "Wait a minute. What are you talking about? All the pieces are in place. Relax. Here's what you do. Let Hercules train the kids. In the next games, I'll take care of them both." 

"Mighty confident are we?" said a sinister voice from behind him.

Hades whirled around to see Maleficent and the Heartless Wolf watching him.

"Who invited you to the party?" He glared at the heartless. "Let me guess your crony? Well, stay out of this. This is my show."

Neither Maleficent nor the heartless seemed fazed.

Maleficent gave a slight bow. "As you wish. Fight to your heart's content."

They left Hades to his brooding. As the walked towards the exit, Maleficent turned towards the heartless. "I have an errand I need you to run?"

"What is it my liege?" The heartless asked, faking mild curiosity.

"I want you to pick up a boy who just landed in Traverse Town."

"A Boy?" The heartless asked curiously. "Why do you want a boy?"

Maleficent raised an eyebrow. "Oh so now you're curious." She handed him a picture of the boy. "His heart has opened to the darkness. He could prove quite useful to us."

The heartless glanced at the picture once, his memory taking in every single detail of the boy, before handing it back to her. His curious expression had returned to a frown. Though she could tell that he greatly disapproved of her scheme, she chose to ignore him. "Now go."

The heartless hesitated for a moment before giving a stiff bow. "Your wish is my command my liege."

He vanished into the shadows as Maleficent walked towards the exit of the Coliseum. "Yes," she said with a sinister grin. "Soon that will be very true.

* * *

Lights aura: Wow! I wrote 14 pages for this chappie! 

Rye: (nods) And to think you thought you didn't have much to say for this chappie

Lights aura: I know it just came out of nowhere. It must be the result of being sleep deprived do to all the rehearsals we have. Cookies for you if you can guess who the boy is that Maleficent was talking about.

Riku fangirls: It better be Riku…

Lights aura: Who let you in here?

Audience: (whistles and looks up at ceiling)

Roxas: Hey isn't tonight your last performance.

Lights aura: Ah, I forgot it is. (begins to sob) The musical is almost over!

Audience: Ha ha! Lights aura is crying!

Lights aura: That's it, the ropes and gags are coming out.

(Ropes and gags tie up audience)

Audience:….

Lights aura: Ah, peace and quiet. I guess all that is left to say is please read and review!

* * *

And seriously guys, please review. I got 6 hits on the last chappie so I know someone is reading my story. Really you can just say hi if you don't feel like typing out a full review. I like to hear from you guys. Well, that's it. I guess I'll see you next chappie! 


	13. A Missing Friend

Lights aura: Hey peoples! For all the Riku fans out there, you will be happy to know this entire chappie is centered around Riku.

Riku Fan Girls: Riku! (squeals with delight)

Rye: (sobs) I'm not in the chappie!!!

Sora Fan Girls: What! There is no Sora! (begins to sob)

Lights aura: Here play this Kingdom Hearts game that is on my cell phone (hands cell phone to Sora Fan Girls)

Sora Fan Girls: (play game) Ohh…Sora…

Audience: Lights aura, why are you being so nice to the fan girls?

Roxas: Yeah usually you lock them out

Lights aura: (laughs sheepishly) Um, yeah, I lost the key to my secret door.

Sora Fan Girls: Nooo! Sora fell into the lava

Riku Fan Girls: Who cares. We want Riku!

(Sora Fan Girls and Riku Fan Girls begin to fight)

Rye: Aren't you going to stop them.

Lights aura: Nope! I just stole my cell phone back and I don't want to share it again. (plays game) Grrrr, stupid lava!!!

Disclaimer: I, sadly, do not own Kingdom Hearts. I only own Rye and my cell phone. (glares at phone) Stupid lava!!! (Fan Girls fight in background)

* * *

The second district of Traverse Town was extremely quiet tonight. The only sounds were the buzz from the neon signs and the footsteps of the sole person on the streets. Riku let out a sigh as he listened to his footsteps ricocheting of the sides of the building. It was quiet, too quiet for his liking. And who could blame him for being this way after the week he had.

After being swallowed by the darkness on Destiny Isles, Riku was thrown into a world of complete darkness. He wandered around for a couple of days until he finally found what ended up being a portal that led to this world. After talking to a couple of the locals and finding out that both Sora and Rye had indeed been sighted in this world, Riku decided to explore the rest of the town in hopes of finding them.

Riku let out sigh as he approached the fountain in the center of the district. "Still no sign of them." He knew that Sora, Rye, and Kairi were perfectly capable of taking care of themselves but he couldn't help but worry. The look on Sora's face when he was being swallowed by darkness still haunted his mind. "He just doesn't understand," Riku muttered as he sat on the edge of the fountain.

Darkness wasn't a bad thing. He wanted to escape his world and it had granted him his wish. The new sights, sounds, and smells were enough to cause sensory overload. The only consequence was that his friends weren't with him.

The image of his three friends was painted in his mind. His shoulders slumped. "I hope they're okay."

The truth was he really missed them.

He missed Sora's goofy grin, Kairi's laugh, and Rye's charming charisma. He let out another sigh as he looked up at the star filled sky. "Maybe coming here was a bad idea after all."

Even though he was in a different world he noticed that the sky was still the same as it was on Destiny Isles. It was kind of funny how even though a world could be so different it still shared similarities. All worlds have life, death, light, darkness, and of course the immense star filled sky. _One sky, one destiny I suppose _he thought as he felt himself relax slightly. It was ironic, really. He wanted to go to other worlds to escape the humdrum life of Destiny Isles yet he felt happier when he found traits that were similar to the Destiny Isles in other worlds.

"Are you lost?" a growling young male voice asked.

Riku glanced towards the speaker in surprise.

He had been so quiet that Riku didn't notice his arrival. Sitting on his hind legs a few feet away from him was a black wolf. He had bright red eyes and a strange heart shaped insignia on his chest. Riku's eyes narrowed as at the insignia. From what the townspeople had told him, Heartless, creatures who stole people's hearts, wore a sign similar to the insignia on their bodies. From what he gathered though, Heartless shouldn't be able to talk.

The wolf sensed the tension in Riku's body and smiled, "You're cautious. That's good. You'll need it around here if you don't want your heart to be stolen."

Riku continued to stare at him his body completely tense.

The wolf rolled his eyes as he took a couple steps back. "Here I'll step back. That way if I lunge at you will have plenty of time to escape. Besides," he looked up and grinned. "You remind be of a trapped mouse right now and it will be a lot easier to talk to you if you act like a normal human…"

"I do not look like a trapped mouse!" Riku snapped, forgetting about his caution.

The wolf grinned in triumph. "Ha, Ha, so the boy can speak!"

Riku smiled slightly as he crossed his arms. "Alright, I'll admit, that was a smart way to get me to talk. So who are you anyway?"

The wolf made a slight bow. "My name is of no real importance. But if you feel that you must call me something then call me Wolf. I am the servant of the witch known as Maleficent."

Riku raised an eyebrow. "A witch? Is she the good or bad kind?"

Wolf shrugged. "Good? Bad? Who knows! It all depends on who you ask. She knew you were coming here and asked for me to find you."

Riku smirked. "Wow, she sounds powerful but why is she looking for me?"

"She wanted your help with something. In return, she would help you find your friends." Wolf noticed the surprised expression on Riku's face. "Yes, she knows you are looking for your friends. Like you said, she is very powerful."

Riku frowned as he thought. Wolf seemed nice enough but he knew nothing about this Maleficent. All the fairytales he read when he was young always portrayed the witch as being evil. Of course he wanted to find his friends, but then what did she want him to do that she could not? "I don't know…" he said as he trailed off.

"I know what it's like" Wolf said softly, snapping Riku out of his thoughts. "To be alone."

"Are you looking for someone, too?" Riku asked curiously.

Wolf nodded. "Yes, I am. I made a promise a long time ago which I intend to keep."

Riku grinned, "Well, I guess I can't say no after that." _Besides, I can always get out of this if I don't like it, _he thought to himself.

Wolf nodded as he touched his nose to the ground. "Good, then follow me." As he lifted his nose, a dark swirling vortex appeared in front of them. "This is a dark portal" Wolf explained. "It will take us to Maleficent." Wolf took a step towards the portal before looking back at Riku. "Ya coming?"

Riku glanced one last time at the starry sky before looking at Wolf with fresh determination. "Yeah," he said, "I'm coming."

* * *

Riku Fan Girls: That's it!!

Lights aura: Hey, at least I wrote about him. This fic. is supposed to be centered around Rye.

Rye: Yeah! So deal with it!

Fan Girls: What! How dare you say that! (prepares pitchforks and torches)

Lights aura: STOP! I REFUSE TO BE CHASED!!!!

Everyone: Ooh!

Fan Girls: You can't do that.

Lights aura: Yes I can. As an authoress I claim Martial law during the fic. on the account that I have more important things to do.

Fan Girls: Namely?

Lights aura: Finding the stupid key to my secret door before something bad happens.

Audience: How come everyone knows where the secret door is except us.

Rye: Because you are prisoners here and you don't get that right.

Audience: (grumbles)

(A moogle appears)

Roxas: Oh look a moogle!

Moogle: Kupa?

(Another moogle appears)

Rye: Oh look there's another one

Both Moogles: Kupa?

Lights aura: This isn't good when moogles start to appear that can only mean one thing….

Audience: What's that?

(99,999 Moogles appear)

Moogles: (glare at everyone evilly) Kupa!

Lights aura: MOOGLE ATTACK!

To be continued…..


	14. Never Push Big Shiny Red Buttons

(The room is a complete mess. Moogles are randomly wandering around.)

(From behind the sofa)

Audience: Why didn't you lock your secret door. This stupid Moogle War has been going on for forever.

Lights aura: Don't lose heart people we can win.

Roxas: (sobbing) It's all over!!

Lights aura: What's wrong with him?

Rye: We just ran out of ice cream five minutes ago.

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts. I only own Rye and my crazy sugar deprived mind.

* * *

Rye let out a sigh as she and Goofy watched Sora and Donald argue over who should fly the Gummy Ship. They had been arguing since the Gummy left Olympus Coliseum. Rye leaned in towards Goofy and whispered, "How long do you think they have been arguing?"

Goofy looked at his watch. "Probably for an hour" he whispered back, "Sora sure is stubborn."

Rye nodded, "Yeah, so is Donald."

They both flinched as Donald screamed at the top of his lungs. "YOU ARE NOT DRIVING THE GUMMY SHIP AND THAT IS FINAL!!!!"

Sora rolled his eyes as he slouched back into his chair.

An uncomfortable silence settled around the four of them.

Finally after ten minutes, Rye broke the silence. "Hey look guys! There's a new world up ahead."

A small world covered in a lush green forest loomed before them.

"Hey, Donald, maybe King Mickey's down there." Goofy said, relieved that the uncomfortable silence was over.

"In a backwater place like that?" Donald shook his head. "No way! Let's move on."

Goofy and Rye looked at him in shock.

Sora frowned as he crossed his arms. "Hold on, Riku and Kairi might be down there. Let's check it out."

Donald shook his head again as he hunched over the wheel. "Forget it! We're on an important mission!"

Rye and Goofy huddled together as they watched Donald and Sora glare at each other.

"Why do I get the feeling that something bad is going to happen" Rye muttered.

Sora reached over and grabbed the wheel from Donald. "Just land."

The Gummy ship dove right sharply.

Donald jerked the wheel from Sora's grasp. "No!"

The Gummy ship dove left sharply.

Goofy and Rye held on to each other for dear life. "I want off this rollercoaster." Rye whined. Goofy nodded in agreement, too scared to speak.

Sora pulled the wheel away from Donald again. "Come on Donald!"

The Gummy ship flipped twice to the right.

Donald gained control again. "No!"

The Gummy ship flipped twice to the left.

"I think I'm going to be sick" Goofy moaned as his face turned green.

"Me too," Rye added.

A big red shiny button caught Sora's eye. "We're landing." With a mischievous grin he pushed the big red shiny button.

Donald's face turned bright red. "Don't touch that! Nooo!" But he was already too late. The Gummy Ship jerked to a stop and sat there as if it were suspended in time. The next second, they were hurdling down towards the world below. Donald and Sora turned back and looked at Rye and Goofy with guilty faces. Rye and Goofy glared back at them.

"If we live through this," Rye yelled over the roar of the engine. "I'm going to kill the both of you."

They all screamed as the Gummy ship plummeted down to the world below.

* * *

Sora woke up with a groan. The first thing he saw was the human sized hole in the thatched roof ceiling. _I must have fallen through there_ he thought as he slowly sat up rubbing his head. He found himself in what appeared to be a tree house. A sharp pain in his head forced him back to reality.

"Oww…my head…" He held his head as he called out, "Rye? Donald? Goofy?"

There was no response.

Sora groaned again as he slowly stood up. "Great now Rye really is going to kill me."

A loud growl snapped Sora out of his thoughts. Looking up in the rafters, Sora saw a large jaguar. Its hungry eyes bore into him as it readied itself to pounce.

_Forget Rye killing me, _he thought as he held out his hand to summon the Keyblade, _If I don't hurry that stupid jaguar would be more than happy to do the job._

Unfortunately, Sora wasn't fast enough. As he brought the Keyblade up to block the jaguar's attack, it swiped the Keyblade out of its way with its massive claws. The force of the blow sent Sora slamming into a nearby wall. With the breath knocked out of him, Sora forced himself to stand on his wobbly legs. The jaguar lunged at him. Before it could make contact, a brown haired man wearing only a loin cloth came swooping in from the rafters and kicked the jaguar out of the way. The man and jaguar glare at each other for a moment. The jaguar let out a hiss before jumping out a nearby window.

The man relaxed as he turned to face Sora. His brown eyes bored into him. "Sabor, danger."

Sora scratched the back of his neck and grinned awkwardly. The man's staring was starting to make him a little nervous. "Um… thank you."

The man cocked his head. "Thank you."

_Why is he thanking me? _Sora thought as the man continued to stare at him. "Uh, what is this place?"

The man grinned happily. "This place, this place."

_This guy's a little weird. He just keeps copying everything I say._ Sora decided to change the subject. "Okaaay… Where did the others go? Look I got separated from my friends. Have you seen them?"

The man frowned in confusion.

"Friends…" Sora said as he waved his hand in the air in a desperate attempt to make him to understand.

The man's face lit up. "Friends!"  
Sora sighed in relief. "Right, my friends! There's three of them. The loud one is Dona-"

The man shook his head to show that he didn't understand.

Now that Sora thought about it, it didn't matter if he found Donald and Goofy. _It was Donald's fault that we got separated anyway. If he really cares, he can look for me. _Sora thought as he turned his gaze back to the man. "You know what? Never mind. I'm looking for my friends Riku, Rye, and Kairi."

"Look for Riku, friends?" The man asked curiously.

Sora nodded. "Right!"

"Rye, friends?"

"Yes," Sora could feel himself growing impatient.

Something moved in Sora's peripheral vision. As he looked, he saw Kairi slowly walking around the circumference of the room. _Am I seeing things?_ Sora thought as he rubbed his eyes.

The man cocked his head. "Kairi, friends?"

"Uhh… right" Sora was still staring at Kairi.

She turned and winked at him before disappearing. Sora blinked a couple of times and rubbed his head. _I must have hit my head harder than I thought._

"Friends here," the man said interrupting Sora's thoughts.

Sora looked back in surprise. "Really?"

The man grunted as he pounded his chest with his hand. "Oh…Oh…Ah…. Friends here."

Sora shrugged his shoulders. "Not sure I understand, but show me! Take me to Rye, Riku, and Kairi!"

The man pointed to himself. "Tarzan," he said," Tarzan go."

"Oh!" Sora said realizing that Tarzan was the man's name. "I'm Sora…" He pantomimed walking. "Tarzan go, Sora go go!"

Tarzan looked at Sora as if he was crazy for a moment before leaving the tree house.

_Great, now he thinks I'm weird, _Sora thought as he followed Tarzan. _Well, at least I got my point across._

As he stepped out into the sunlight, he was greeted by an endless green forest. Sora frowned. _I hope the others are alright_. Sora thought as he hurried to catch up with Tarzan.

* * *

"Stupid bamboo! Stupid rock! Stupid forest! Stupid world!" Donald yelled at the top of his lungs as he kicked a rock. After the crash, Goofy and Donald woke up to find themselves in a bamboo thicket.

Goofy watched as Donald continued with his rambling. "You know when we find Rye, she is going to kill both you and Sora."

Donald groaned as he crossed his arms and sat on a large rock. "Hopefully she won't remember."

They sat in silence for a few moments.

Goofy sighed as he looked around. "Gawrsh, where are we? I sure hope Sora and Rye are okay."

Donald rolled his eyes as he stood up. "Aw, who needs them? We can find the king without their help…Huh?" A rustle from behind him caught his attention. Donald whirled around and came face to face with a young gorilla. They both stood still staring at each other for a couple of seconds. Then they both screamed at the top of their lungs as they ran in opposite directions. The gorilla dropped something as she left.

"Huh? What's this?" Goofy said as he picked up the object.

"Lo..Looks like a Gummy block" Donald stuttered from behind Goofy.

A gun shot went off causing both of them to jump.

"Uh, Donald, I think we're about to have company" Goofy said.

* * *

_The girl sighed as she packed her last items into her suitcase. "I sure hope this will last for the journey..." she mumbled as she closed the latch on her suitcase._

"_You aren't planning to stow away on your father's ship now are you?" said a young amused voice from behind her._

_The girl slowly turned around with a guilty look on her face. "Maybe."_

_She could not see the speaker due to the fact that he was standing in the shadows but she knew his voice all too well._

_The figure sighed. "You know your father would not approve."_

"_Please don't tell daddy. I know that he will be mad at me but I need to find out what happened that night… what happened to me."_

_The figure was silent for a moment. "Well," he began, "I am your guardian therefore I must protect you…"_

_The girl's shoulders sagged. She knew that she had lost._

"_So," he continued, "If for some reason we happened to… get stuck on the ship while it is taking off, his majesty could not complain since I would be there to protect you…"_

_The girl's face lit up. "Thank you so much! You're the best!" _

**I can always count on you, Haku.**

* * *

_I can always count on you, Haku._

The words echoed through Rye's mind as she came to. _Haku?_ Rye groaned as she slowly opened her eyes. _Who is Haku? _

She woke up to a sea of green. Trees surrounded her on all sides. "Rye? Rye, are you okay?" asked a worried voice. Rye looked down to see Jiminy standing on her chest with a frown on his face.

Rye smiled. "Oh, hey Jiminy. How long was I out?"

Jiminy relaxed slightly, "For about an hour. I was afraid that you might never wake up."

Rye grinned sheepishly, "Sorry about that. I'm kind of a deep sleeper." She tried to sit up. Pain shot through her left ankle causing her to grimace.

Seeing her expression, Jiminy said apologetically. "When you landed, a log fell on your ankle. I tried to move it but" He looked himself up and down, "As you can see I'm afraid I couldn't really do much."

Rye shook her head as she tried to push the log off. "Don't worry about it. Besides, I think I only twisted it." The log refused to budge. Rye let out a sigh as she leaned back on her hands. The pain in her ankle had begun to throb. She tried to block the pain out of her mind. At least the Heartstaff didn't weigh as much as it used to. In fact, it almost felt like it wasn't even there.

Her face paled as she patted her back. "Jiminy? Where's the Heartstaff?" she asked trying to keep her voice steady.

Jiminy hopped of her chest and pointed behind her. "When we landed, it flew off over there."

Rye looked behind her to find the Heartstaff lying on a pile of leaves. She let out a sigh of relief as Jiminy continued.

"If you want I can try to roll it to you."

Rye smiled. He really did have a heart of gold. "No, that's alright. As soon as I get this dumb log off, I go get it myself."

A rustle from the foliage caught their attention. Three monkey-like heartless stepped out from behind the trees. All three stared at her, their eyes filled with hunger.

"Oh boy, this doesn't look good" Rye mumbled as she leaned back and reached for the Heartstaff. It was just past her fingertips. She grumbled in frustration as she pushed on the log. It wouldn't budge.

The three heartless slowly advanced, laughter in the cold eyes.

"Uh Jiminy," Rye whispered to the little cricket beside her, "We need to come up with a new plan and fast."

One of the heartless grew impatient. It sprung at her. Before she could react, a figure jumped in between her and the heartless knocking the heartless away as if it were a mere toy. In a flash, it attacked the other two destroying them instantly. Seeing that its comrades were defeated, the last heartless quickly stood up and raced into the forest. The figure stood there catching its breath. When it turned around, Rye let out a gasp.

It was none other than the heartless wolf from Traverse Town.

Seeing her reaction, Jiminy quickly piped up, "What do you want with us?"

The Heartless Wolf lowered himself to the ground. "Please I don't mean any harm. I only wish to help."

Rye wasn't sure why but, in her heart, she felt that she could trust him. Plus, though he was only a few feet away from her, the weird feeling in her stomach hadn't return.

The wolf slowly crawled towards her. If she wasn't in shock, she might have laughed at how comical he looked.

When he finally reached her, he sat up. "I'm going to remove the log now." Rye and Jiminy watched in amazement as he effortlessly lifted the log off her ankle and set it to the side.

Pain surged through Rye's body as she quickly brought her legs into her chest. Her ankle was swollen two times its normal size and was a yellowish blue color.

The wolf's voice cut through the pain, "May I see your ankle."

Rye looked at him for a moment before she slowly extended her ankle towards him. She winced slightly as he inspected it with his paw. "You've definitely twisted it. If you trust me, I can heal it. I will only fix it with your consent though."

"Don't let him, Rye" Jiminy hissed, "He's a heartless."

Rye continued to stare at the wolf. Then to both the wolf's and Jiminy's amazement, she slowly nodded.

The wolf smiled, "Watch this." He placed his nose on her ankle. "Cura" he mumbled as bright green light encircled her ankle. A soothing sensation ran through Rye's body. After the light died down, both Rye and Jiminy were surprised to see her ankle back to normal. She quickly stood up and tested her ankle. It worked perfectly.

"Wow," she said as she turned to face the wolf, "It's all better. Thank you so much for…" she trailed off realizing that the wolf was nowhere in sight. "He's gone."

"Thank goodness," Jiminy said as he began to scribble in his notebook. "I suppose this is another event you don't wasn't me to tell the others?"

"If you don't mind," Rye said as she picked up the Heartstaff and placed it in its holder. She stood frozen in place for a moment. She had just realized that they were by themselves.

She let out a growl as she clinched her fists. "When I find them, I am so killing Sora and Donald!"

* * *

Roxas: (sobbing) Oh, the horror! All the ice cream is gone! Gone!

Fan Girls: This is why war is wrong. It only brings tears.

Audience: Wow, we didn't know fan girls could be so peaceful.

(Random envelope falls behind sofa)

Lights aura: (picks it up and reads front) It's a letter from the Moogles.

Rye: Ooh, what does it say.

Lights aura: It says: Give up, we have kidnapped Sora and are holding him prisoner. If you do not give up in the next 30 minutes, we will kidnap Riku as well. Yours Truly, the evil Moogles.

Sora Fan Girls: They captured Sora!

Riku Fan Girls: They threatened Riku!

Fan Girls: We shall destroy the moogles! (grabs pitchforks and torches of doom)

Lights aura: Wow, the fan girls are even more crazy than the audience.

Audience: (glares at Lights aura)

* * *

Please Read and Review and if you know the name of the heartless monkeys if could write it in a review I would greatly appreciate it. See ya next chappie! 


	15. Guns and Tea Don't Mix

(room is in complete ruins. Triumphant music plays in background)

Audience: Yeah! We won! We won! We defeated the Moogles!

Lights aura: And the best part is we saved Sora!

Sora: (is sitting in a chair in a daze)

Rye: After such an event, you must be exhausted.

Sora: It was horrible. They tied me to a chair and forced me to eat broccoli.

Everyone: (gasps)

Lights aura and Rye: (Eye Twitch) Must… resist urge… to glomp… Sora.

Sora: (yawns and leans back in chair)

Lights aura and Rye: (glomps Sora)

Sora: (is glomped)

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts. I only own Rye and this yummy watermelon I am eating…mmm melony…

* * *

Maleficent watched as Riku practiced with his sword in the courtyard down below. Though he had only recently learned how to summon his sword, he was doing well against the heartless Maleficent let him practice on. "Soon," she whispered, "Very soon he will be ready."

"Having fun watching your puppet, my liege?" Wolf asked as he walked into the room. Though he did not show it in his expression, Maleficent could tell he was still angry with this situation.

"He is doing fine," she said.

They stood in silence for a moment.

"This is wrong," Wolf blurted out suddenly. "He is just a kid!"

Maleficent arched an eyebrow in surprise. "Since when have you grown a conscious?" She laughed slightly returning her gaze to Riku, "Now go be a good boy and fetch my 'puppet' as you call him."

Wolf arched his back and growled. "No."

She whirled around enraged. "How dare you defy me! I am your master."

Wolf glared at her. "You are not my master and you never will be."

Maleficent's staff began to glow. "How dare you speak back to me, heartless. Don't tell me you have already forgotten our contract."

Wolf began to twitch and squirm in pain as the staff grew brighter. "I am not stupid. I know of your little excursion earlier today."

Wolf's eyes widen in surprise. The staff slowly dimmed leaving Wolf to catch his breath.

Maleficent smirked. "Yes, I know about your connection with the keeper of the Heartstaff." She leaned in until she was barely an inch from his face. "And, if you want to continue to have that loophole your promise gives you, I suggest you do as I say or I will make sure that that loophole in our contract is destroyed. That is a promise."

Wolf stood silent with his head bowed.

Satisfied, she continued as she slowly walked away, "Good, now bring Riku to the sanctuary for me."

"Yes, my liege" Wolf said in a monotone voice.

"That's my boy," Maleficent said, her voice oozing with sarcasm, "I can always count you, can't I."

* * *

"Over the river and through the woods to who knows where we go!" Rye sang at the top of her lungs as she skipped through the trees.

"Rye" Jiminy said as he desperately tried to cling onto her shoulder, "Don't bounce so much."

"Oopsie!" Rye came to a stop allowing Jiminy time to climb back on her shoulder. She continued at a slow walk. "Sorry about that."

"That's fine," Jiminy said as pulled his notebook out and began to write.

"Whatcha writing?" Rye asked curiously.

"I'm writing down a brief description of the monkey heartless we just saw" Jiminy replied as he continued to write.

"Oh? What did you name them?" Rye asked.

"I'm calling them Wild Hearts."

"Well, that fits them perfectly" Rye said as she pushed a stray branch out of her way.

After ten minutes of walking, the forest cleared out. As Rye stepped past the last tree, she found herself in a campground. "Well," she muttered to Jiminy, "I guess this world is inhabited by someone other than the heartless."

Jiminy nodded as he put his notebook away. As Rye looked around, she saw a young woman with long brown hair and brown eyes bent over a record player.

Rye slowly walked over to her. "Uh hi," she said as the woman turned around. "I'm kind of lost."

"Oh" the woman said in surprise, "you speak English. So, then, you must not be related to Tarzan…"

"Tarzan?" Rye said completely confused, "Umm…."

The woman snapped out of her musings, "Oh my where are my manners! My name is Jane. I am here to study the gorillas. Are you here to study them as well?"

"My name is Rye and the cricket on my shoulder is Jiminy," Rye said as she pointed to herself and Jiminy, "And no we aren't here to study gorillas. Our ship crashed and we got separated from our friends…Have anyone named Sora, Donald, or Goofy pass by here?"

Jane sighed sadly, "No, I'm afraid not." Her face lit up. "But as soon as Tarzan gets back I'm sure he could help you find them."

"Okay…" Rye said looking disheartened.

Jane smiled as she wrapped her arm around Rye's shoulder. "How about we have some tea to pass the time? I just made a fresh pot."

Rye smiled remembering how when they were younger, Kairi and herself would have tea parties and pretend to be princesses while Sora and Riku would spar with their wooden swords. She turned to face Jane. "Yes thank you. Tea would be great."

* * *

"567,568, 569, 570 trees!" Sora said as he and Tarzan entered a campsite. For the past hour, Sora had been following Tarzan through the forest. After a couple of failed attempts at a conversation, Sora decided to pass the time by counting trees. At around 300, Sora realized that he had made a big mistake.

"Jane!" Tarzan called as he raced towards the tent.

A young woman stepped out of the tent grinning. "Tarzan!" She looked at Sora curiously. "Oh, and who is this?"

Sora scratched the back of his neck and grinned awkwardly. "Uh, hi there. I'm…"

"Oh, you speak English! You wouldn't by any chance be looking for a young girl named Rye would you?"

Sora's face lit up. "Rye's here?"

Rye burst out from the tent. "SORA!" She yelled as she ran to hug him. She ended up tripping on a rock and tackling Sora instead. Rye blushed. "Um, I meant to do that."

Sora laughed as he helped her up. "It's good to see you as well. I'm glad to see you in a good mood."

Rye beamed. "Oh, I was having a lovely time waiting for you. Jane and I were talking and drinking tea…"

"I see you have found the rest of them" a voice said. All four turned to see a man with black hair and a moustache entering the camp. In his hands, he carried a rifle. Trailing behind him like two naughty school kids were Donald and Goofy.

Goofy's face lit up. "Sora! Rye!"

Sora and Rye grinned as they ran towards them. "Goofy! Donald!"

Again, Rye's foot caught on a rock sending her tumbling into Donald and Goofy. "Stupid rocks, getting in my way." She mumbled as she stood up. "I'm so glad you guys are alright!" She continued as she gave a very happy Goofy and a surprised Donald each a hug.

Sora followed suit. When he and Donald were about to hug, they realized that they were still mad at each other and quickly turned in opposite directions with their arms crossed. Goofy looked from them to the beaming Rye.

"Uh Rye," he began, "Aren't you still mad at Donald and Sora? I thought that you wanted to ki…" Donald and Sora quickly covered his mouth before he could finish.

"You thought I wanted to do what?" Rye asked as Sora and Donald struggled to keep Goofy quiet.

"Nothing, Goofy just hit his head. That's all" Donald said as he and Sora let go.

"I did?" Goofy asked as he rubbed his head.

Sora nodded his head. When Donald and Sora realized that they were actually agreeing, they glared at each other and quickly turned their away with their arms crossed.

Goofy and Rye looked at one another and sighed.

The man rolled his eyes. "I stumbled into a circus of clowns. They are no use for hunting gorillas."

Jane glared at the man. "Mr. Clayton, we're studying the gorillas, not hunting them. This is research."

Clayton snorted in disgust as he left the campsite.

Jane let out a sigh before returning her attention to the others. "Well, the more the merrier. Do make yourselves at home."

They thanked her.

"Well, anyway…" Sora began.

"I'm staying" both he and Donald said at the same time.

Sora looked at him in surprise.

Goofy dug something out of his pocket. "Sora, Rye, look what we found." Goofy held a green block in front of their faces.

"What is that?" Sora asked curiously.

"It's a Gummy block. Kind of like the one we found in Wonderland."

"So that means…" Rye began.

"The king could be here" Donald finished. "So, we've gotta work together to look for him." He cast a sideways glance at Sora. "For now."

"Fine" Sora said. "I'll let you tag along." He cut his eyes at Donald. "For now."

Rye rolled her eyes and slapped her forehead. "This is going to be a long day."

* * *

Once they were in the tent, Jane began to busy herself with a projector. "Apparently, Tarzan was raised in the jungle by the gorillas. Communicating with him still isn't easy but he is learning."

"So he was speaking in 'gorilla' back there…" Sora said. "He said Riku and Kairi are here."

"They are?" Rye asked, excitement shining in her eyes.

Sora nodded. "Also, he said one word I couldn't understand."

Jane finished with the projector and looked up at them. "Why don't we try this?" She motioned to the projector. "We'll show Tarzan some slides and see if any of them match that word." Jane started up the projector as Tarzan watched the screen intently. The first photo was of a man and woman dancing followed by a picture of a gorilla.

The third slide caught Sora off guard. It was a picture of a castle. He wasn't sure why, but he felt that there was something important about it.

Seeing his expression, Jane asked. "What's wrong, Sora?"

Sora shook his head to clear his thoughts. "What? Oh it's nothing."

Jane returned to the slides.

Sora sighed as he thought to himself. _That place… it just looked so familiar. But how? I've never been off my island._

"I know how you feel," Rye murmured snapping Sora out of his thoughts.

"Huh?" Sora said as he turned to look at her.

Rye didn't take her eyes of the screen. "That place. It felt familiar to me too."

After viewing five more slides the reel ended. Jane looked at Tarzan expectantly. "Well, Tarzan?"

"Where are our friends" Sora said motioning to himself and Rye. "Riku and Kairi."

Tarzan shook his head in confusion.

Sora frowned "Hey, I thought…"

"That leaves just one place." Clayton interrupted as he entered the tent.

The strange feeling came back. Rye didn't experience the nausea but that strange sense that something wasn't right was there, putting her on guard.

Clayton put his hand on Sora's shoulder. "Young man, we've been in this jungle for some time now but we have yet to encounter these friends of yours. I'd wager they're with the gorillas." He glared at Tarzan. "But Tarzan refuses to take us to them."

Jane let out a sigh in frustration. "Really, Mr. Clayton. Tarzan wouldn't hide…"

But Clayton was already on a rant. He closed in on Tarzan. "Then take us there!" he said mockingly. "Take us to the gorillas." He pointed to a nearby blackboard with a chalk drawing of a gorilla. "Go-ril-las."

Tarzan looked at Sora for a moment. Then, to everyone's amazement he nodded his head.

"Tarzan," Jane said worriedly, "are you sure?"

Tarzan had a determined look on his face. "Tarzan go see Kerchak."

"Kerchak?" Jane asked curiously.

"He must be the leader." Clayton said with excitement. He grinned mischievously. "Perfect. I'll go along as an escort. After all, the jungle is a dangerous place."

As they followed Tarzan out the tent, Rye grabed Sora's hand forcing him to stop.

"What's wrong?" Sora asked frowning.

"I think we should keep an eye on Clayton. I don't trust him," Rye whispered.

Sora cocked his head curiously. "Why would you think that?"

Rye shrugged as she checked to make sure the Heartstaff was secured. "Let's just call it… a feeling."

* * *

Lights aura: You know what I just realized.

Audience: What?

Lights aura: I updated in a day

Rye: Wow! That is amazing!

Sora: Yeah.

Lights aura and Rye: (eye twitch) Must… resist… fan girl… impulses…

Roxas: (runs in) Guess what!

Rye: You know what is going to happen to me in this fic.?

Audience: You are going to help us escape?

Lights aura: You are going to let me steal your keyblade?

Sora: Pie?

Roxas: No, even better. I found more ice cream. (hugs ice cream) It's a miracle!

Everyone:….


	16. The Fabulous Flying Clayton

Lights aura: Hey Peoples! I'm back with a new chappie! Yeah! (runs around in circles)

Audience: Why are you so hyper?

Lights aura: Because a new video for Kingdom Hearts III came out on you tube and it was awesome! (squeals) There was even an older version of Roxas who got frozen.

Audience: That sounds funny.

Rye: ooh! I have a theory!

(crickets chirp)

Rye: See, what happens is that Roxas decides he wants some ice cream. So he goes into the big freezer of doom and looks for it. While in there, someone shuts the door, thus causing him to become a living Popsicle.

(crickets chirp)

Lights aura: Audience, stop imitating the crickets.

Audience: (whistles and looks up at the ceiling)

Lights aura: Anyway, now the question is… Who was the one who froze Roxas? (shifty eyes)

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts. I only own Rye and Wolf (he, he, I forgot to mention him in the last few disclaimers…)

* * *

"Oh my gosh! Hippos!" Rye said with delight. After leaving the campsite, they entered a clearing with a pond. In the pond, slept two fat pink hippos. Only their heads were above the water. "Hey Sora!" Rye said as she turned to face him, "Do you remember that movie, you know, the one with the ballerina hippos?"

Donald raised an eyebrow, "Why would someone want to watch a movie about hippos dancing?"

"I think it sounds nice" Goofy said, quickly coming to Rye's defense.

Rye shook her head. "No, Donald, you don't understand. See, what happens is there are these ballerina hippos and they are dancing. Then these dancing crocodiles try to take spotlight. So they have a dance off. I can't remember who won though…"

A hippo groaned as it submerged itself underwater.

"You remember, don't you Sora?" Rye asked, her eyes sparkling.

Sora grinned sheepishly. "Uh, to tell you the truth, I think I fell asleep during the movie."

Rye stared at him in shock. "You fell asleep? How could you fall asleep during such an incredible masterpiece? When we get back to the Destiny Isles, I'm going to force you to watch it."

Sora was about to complain when Tarzan grunted. They turned toward him in surprise. He was already half way up the vine and staring down at them expectantly.

"Oh," Sora said, "I think we need to follow him."

* * *

After an hour of trekking (and convincing Donald that he would not die if he swung on a vine,) they finally reached the gorillas' nest. Sora, Donald, and Goofy stood back and marveled at the gorillas that surrounded them.

"Kerchak, please listen to me." Tarzan said as he stepped forward. "I know the nesting grounds are secret, but I trust them. You see, I want to help them because...because...well, they need us."

Kerchak glared refusing to comment.

Of course, to Donald, Goofy, Rye, and Sora, the whole conversation sounded like a bunch of grunts and growls.

Goofy leaned toward Donald "Did you get any of that?"

Donald shook his head.

"Hey, where did Clayton go?" Rye asked as she looked around.

"No idea," Sora said, "he must've gotten lost."

"Kerchak" Tarzan pleaded, hoping his leader would understand.

Kerchak was about to say something when he frowned and looked up behind him. He grunted to the gorilla beside him and they both walked away. Tarzan sighed as his shoulders slumped.

"You know," Goofy said as he scratched his chin. "That gorilla seemed sorta distracted by something.

"Yeah," Donald said, unconsciously mimicking Goofy's actions. "Was he looking toward the tree house?"

They all looked in the direction of the tree house.

* * *

_This shot is perfect. I can't possibly miss,_ Clayton thought as he aimed his rifle at the young gorilla who was busy playing with a globe. He wrapped his finger around his trigger. As he pressed down, a scream startled him. He barely missed the gorilla. Panic-stricken, the gorilla quickly jumped out a nearby window. Angry, Clayton whirled around to face the intruder. His face whitened when he realized that the intruders were none other than Donald, Goofy, Sora, Rye, and Tarzan. They were glaring at him.

"What's the big idea!" Donald exclaimed as he crossed his arms and tapped his foot.

"Wait, Kerchak. Please!" Tarzan reached towards the window. They looked up to see both Kerchak and the young gorilla leaving.

Clayton cleared his throat as he tugged on his collar. "You don't understand. I was only trying to… Ah. A snake slithered by, you see. I saved that poor gorilla's life."

"Uh huh…" Donald raised an eyebrow.

"Right," Sora said as he crossed his arms.

"I wonder what Jane is going to say once she hears about this" Rye mused aloud.

* * *

Jane was positively livid. "Mr. Clayton! How could you do such a thing!"

Clayton threw his hands up in defense. "Now, Miss Porter, as I told you, I was not aiming at the gorilla."

"You are not to go near the gorillas again!" Jane said as she shook her finger in his face.

"All because of one mishap?" Clayton asked as he gently pushed her finger away. "Come, now…" He stopped when he realized he was receiving glares from everyone inside the tent. Feeling embarrassed, Clayton quickly excused himself from the tent. Once he was out of earshot, he let out a frustrated sigh. "What am I doing with these imbeciles?" He clenched his fist. "Blasted gorillas! I'll hunt down every last one of them! I'll track them down somehow. I'll even stake my life on it." He was about to reach for his pipe when a noise distracted him. Frowning he peered into the bushes where the noise had come from. His eyes widened. "What in the world!"

* * *

"Well that was a downer" Rye said as she collapsed into a fold out chair.

"I'm sorry for the way Mr. Clayton acted. He knows better than to attack gorillas" Jane ran her fingers through her hair.

"Don't worry" Goofy said with a grin "It's not your fault."

A loud gunshot rang through the air. All five stiffened.

"Heartless!" Sora exclaimed.

"We better go help Clayton" Donald said resentfully.

"Yeah," Rye said as she followed the other outside, "though he really doesn't deserve it." _Besides, _Rye thought as they headed toward the bamboo thicket, _why do I get the feeling this is the beginning of something bad_?

* * *

Ten minutes passed, and still no one had returned. Jane sighed as busied herself with cleaning up the tent. "I do hope Mr. Clayton and the others are safe…" Her musings were cut short when she heard the tent flap open. She quickly turned around to greet the person. When she saw who it was all the color drained from her face and she screamed.

* * *

"Well we sure taught them a lesson" Donald thrust his staff in the air triumphantly.

They had just defeated a band of heartless and were returning to the camp. Tarzan was in the lead, anxious to find Jane while the others followed.

"Yeah, but we didn't find Clayton" Sora said with a frown.

"Don't worry, he'll be alright" Goofy said cheerfully.

"Yeah, he's probably already at the tent waiting for us" Rye added. Tarzan stopped suddenly, causing everyone to pile up behind him.

"Hey," Donald said angrily, "What's the big id… oh…"

They had reached the campsite only to find it in complete shambles. Sora, Donald, Rye, and Goofy quickly followed Tarzan as he tore open the tent flap and rushed inside. As they entered the tent, they saw Jane sprawled out unconscious on the floor with the young gorilla hovering over her anxiously.

"Jane!" Tarzan said as he gently lifted her into a sitting position.

Jane groaned as she slowly opened her eyes. "What happened…"

"That's what we were about to ask you" Rye said as she bent down next to her. Tarzan moved aside as Sora and Rye helped Jane to her feet.

Jane sighed as she rubbed her head. "Clayton came to the tent, and…" Her brows furrowed. "That's the last thing I remember."

"Clayton?" Sora said in surprise.

During the conversation, Tarzan had been talking to the young gorilla. Sensing a break in the conversation, he quickly stood up and said, "Gorillas trapped. Terk ran."

"We must help the gorillas" Jane said. She swayed slightly as she tried to exit the tent. "Wait a moment" Rye said as she grabbed Jane's hand

"You need rest" Sora said as he grabbed her other hand and steered her to a chair.

Jane frowned. "But,"

"Don't worry. We'll take care of the rest" Donald said.

"Terk stay with Jane" Tarzan said to the young gorilla. Terk nodded as she huddled next to Jane. Resigned, Jane leaned back in her seat.

"Well, then, please be careful"

"We will," Goofy said as he followed the other out.

* * *

After battling a couple groups of heartless, the quartet finally reached the cliff. Once they arrived, they were surprised to see Clayton and the heartless surrounding the gorillas. Clayton was about to open fire when Sora shouted "No!"

Clayton lowered his gun as he turned towards the quartet. His eyes were glazed over and his mouth was slack. The strange feeling returned causing Rye to tighten her hold on the Heartstaff.

"Clayton?" Sora took a step toward him worriedly.

"Not Clayton!" Tarzan said frantically. "Ah ooh ooh. Not Clayton!"

"He's right" Rye said causing everyone to look at her. "At least, he isn't the Clayton we know."

They stood there for a tense second. Then, to everyone's amazement, Clayton levitated into the air.

"What the heck!" Donald quacked.

"How's he doing that?" Goofy asked curiously.

As Rye stared at Clayton, she thought she caught a glimpse of something. She squinted harder and saw, for a moment, a large foot… hovering over Sora's head.

"Sora move!" Rye yelled as she waved her staff.

Sora raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"Now!" Rye said as she sent a fire ball hurling in his direction. He moved just as a large clawed foot print appeared where he had previously been. The fireball smacked into an invisible leg. There was a loud howl as Clayton began to sway like a demonic puppet.

Goofy, Donald, and Rye quickly rushed over to Sora who was sprawled out on the ground.

"Gawrsh Sora, are you going to be okay?" Goofy asked worriedly.

Sora stood up and brushed some dirt from his shirt. "I'll live. By the way, thanks for the safe Rye"

"No problem!" Rye said with a grin. She glanced towards Clayton and the invisible creature. At the moment, it seemed as if they were still recovering from the shock. "Hey guys," Rye said as she turned back to the others. "I think Clayton is riding some sort of invisible heartless. The best thing to do would probably be to take it out first."

"Right," Sora said as he summoned the Keyblade. "Then let's do it!"

"Hey Sora?" Donald asked.

"What?' Sora raised an eyebrow.

Rye and Goofy held their breath.

"Be careful." Donald looked quickly toward Clayton.

Sora smiled slightly. Realizing what he was doing, he quickly looked toward Clayton as well. "You be careful too."

Rye and Goofy let out a sigh of relief.

* * *

With one final shriek, the invisible heartless (which resembled a chameleon when visible) fell to the ground. It slowly faded into the darkness, pulling Clayton in with it. Once they was gone, Kerchak and the other gorillas appeared. Kerchak looked Sora up and down once, then picked him up and threw him. Before Sora even had a chance to yell, he landed on a patch of grass. "Well, you're welcome to you too" Sora mumbled as he stood up. Three loud oofs behind him alerted him that his comrades had just arrived.

"They could have said thank you" Donald grumbled as he picked himself up.

"What better way to say thank you than by throwing you as far as they can" Rye said sarcastically as Goofy and she stood up as well. Tarzan appeared beside them with Jane in his arms and Terk following him.

He set Jane on her feet. "Tarzan, home," he pointed to the waterfalls ahead of them.

"Oh now I get it" Sora said, "By throwing us up here, they were letting us know that they appreciated our help and trusted us."

"You're welcome!" Goofy yelled as he waved to the gorillas down below. Kerchak nodded before signaling to the gorillas to leave.

"How are you feeling?" Rye asked as Jane straightened out her skirt.

"Much better thank you." She glanced up to see Tarzan grinning as he motioned for them to follow. "Now, how about we go see Tarzan's home?"

* * *

After climbing the slick rock walls, they entered a cavern behind the highest waterfall. The inside was made of smooth damp rock. One of the walls was completely covered in vines. And in the center of that wall, was a massive group a bright blue butterflies.

"Wow," Rye said as her eyes sparkled with delight, "They are so pretty!"

Tarzan grunted as he motioned around the cavern.

Sora frowned. "Wait, this is your home?" His shoulders drooped, "But that means…" He was interrupted by a loud roaring sound.

"Huh?" Goofy looked from side to side.

"What is that?" Donald quacked.

"The waterfalls," Jane mused, "They're echoing all the way up here."

Tarzan motioned to Sora's chest. "Oh oh ah. Friends there." He motioned around the room. "See friends."

"Oh," Jane said as she snapped her fingers. "Now I've got it. Oh oh ah means heart. Friends in ours hearts."

"Heart" Tarzan smiled, liking the sound of the word.

"Oh," Sora said slightly disheartened, "so that's what it meant."

Tarzan nodded. "Friends, same heart. Clayton, lose heart. No heart, no see friends."

Sora sighed as he turned towards Donald. "Hey Donald, sorry about what I said earlier."

"Aww," Donald said as Sora and he hugged. "I'm sorry too."

Rye grinned as she draped her arms over them. "Yeah remember all for one…"

"And one for all" Goofy finished as he joined in the group hug.

The butterflies scattered as a blue light appeared underneath them. The blue light formed into a keyhole. Instinctively, Sora held the Keyblade towards the keyhole. A beam of light shot out from it and hit the keyhole. At the same moment the keyhole clicked, the sphere in the Heartstaff flashed green for a second then returned to normal. Once the keyhole vanished, a green block fell to the floor with a clink. Donald picked it up and grinned. "What do you know! It's another gummi!"

"But it's sure not the king's" Goofy said frowning.

Terk nudged Donald playfully and batted her eyes.

"I think someone has a new admirer" Jane said as Rye giggled.

Donald looked from Terk, to everyone else, then back to Terk again. "Oh no, no, no!" He said as he waved his arms in protest. "Daisy would kill me!"

Everyone broke into laughter.

* * *

With the help of Tarzan and Jane, they were able to find the ship in thirty minutes. Though it had crashed through many trees, the gummy ship was perfectly fine. After saying goodbye to Tarzan, and Jane, the quartet departed.

"The gummi blocks that came out of that glowing hole and the one in Wonderland... They're not like the others. Wonder what they're used for." Sora mused.

"I don't know" Donald said as he flipped a switch.

"Maybe Leon will know" Goofy said as he hit his fist in his palm.

"Hmm, back to Traverse Town then?" Donald asked.

"Donald," Sora said with a huge grin, "Can I fly the gummi ship?"

Donald's face turned bright red.

Rye's eye twitched.

Goofy glared.

"Sora!" They all yelled.

Sora grinned sheepishly. "What! I thought since I was the Keyblade master I should be able to fly the gummi."

Donald's face changed from red to purple.

Goofy rolled his eyes and slapped his forehead. "Here we go again…"

* * *

(lights are dimmed, detective music is playing in background)

Lights aura: I, being the clever detective that I am, have deduced that the audience were the ones who froze Roxas.

Audience: That's stupid! We're your prisoners! How could we close the door to the freezer of doom if we can't even leave this room?

Rye: They do make a good point.

Lights aura: Then who do you think did it, Detective Rye?

Rye: I think it was the Sora and Riku fan girls. They have perfect motives.

Sora Fan Girls: Why would we want to hurt the other half of Sora?

Riku Fan Girls: Why would we care about someone other than Riku?

Lights aura: Hmm… They do make a good point.

Audience: Why can't you and Rye be suspects? You both want to steal Roxas' Keyblade.

Rye: We can't be suspects. We are part of the Roxas/Sora Fan Club therefore we are exempt from suspicion.

Roxas: (walks in with ice cream) Hey everybody!

Lights aura/Rye: Roxas! You're not a living Popsicle! (tackles Roxas)

Roxas: Why would I be a Popsicle? I just went to go get ice cream.

Audience: Please someone save us from this insanity.

* * *

(Please Read and Review! Imaginary Cookies for the person who knows what movie Rye was talking about earlier...) 


End file.
